Searching For Indigo Eyes
by Cone of Depression
Summary: Running late. Sunglasses. Collision. The perfect recipe to ruin your first meeting with your soulmate. At least, that's Luna's problem. The good news? She's found her soulmate. The bad news? For some reason, he's with someone else! Matthias should be the happiest man on Earth, but he's not. His soulmate's eyes are green, so why does he dream of indigo?
1. Collision

**Luna**

Personally, I've never cared too much about the whole soulmate business. Sure, I knew how it worked: one day I would meet my other half, my dull, dark gray eyes would fill with color, and we would live happily ever after. That's what I've been told all my life.

At least, it did happen to my parents and to everyone else around me.

My father is a florist with a hobby of singing as he tended to his plants, while my mother was a talented traveling musician, known for her ability to master every kind of instrument known to man. They were extremely lucky to find each other, when she heard him singing in a busy city street corner after a concert. She followed the music and found my father crooning to his roses. It was a match made in heaven, and I loved to hear them tell how they met over and over again.

Tina, my cousin, was also lucky to find her soulmate when we were just 10 years old. That day we were playing hide-and-seek at Alice's place. Berwald's father worked there as a gardener and I knew him from his visits to my father's flower shop, but I didn't know that he brought his son along with him. Tina happened to be it at the time, so imagine her surprise when she found not us, hiding in the bushes, but Berwald planting tulips.

Alice Kirkland, my best and childhood friend, found hers at Universal Studios. We were hanging around Hogsmeade, cosplaying as students of Hogwarts. I was dressed as Luna Lovegood while she walked around as a proud Slytherin. As we admired the displays, a blond, bespectacled guy ran into us in disheveled Gryffindor attire.

I'll never forget the moment when their eyes met for the first time, changing their eye colors forever. Alice's eyes morphed into a vivid emerald green, while his bled into a brilliant ocean blue. They couldn't stop staring at each other after that, lost in their own little world, as if only they existed.

I couldn't help but be jealous of them. After Alice, I still had yet to find my soulmate as well. Out of our little trio, I was now the odd one out.

Even Emil, my precious younger brother, had found his other half before me, on his first day of high school, in his English class. I was surprised to see his new violet eyes at lunch. He introduced her as well, a pretty Asian girl named Leona with warm brown eyes. My only regret was that I wasn't there to witness the event myself.

As happy as I was for them, days like this irritated me that they were distracted. Both Alfred and Berwald joined the soccer team, and my group members preferred to ditch our warm-up sessions in favor of watching their soulmates practice. I don't blame them though; if my soulmate played that sport too, then I'd definitely want to watch with them.

They obviously felt guilty about that, since they often tried to set me up on blind dates in order to help me find my soulmate. At this point though, I knew it was best to refuse their attempts.

The last blind date I've been on had been with an annoying, loud, self-centered German boy named Gilbert. He was also on the soccer team, and he hadn't found his soulmate yet. Needless to say, that outing didn't go well. I'd feel sorry for his soulmate, but I swear, the next time I hear the word 'awesome' . . .

The one before that hadn't been any better. Alice had introduced me to Vladimir, a guy she met at a Twilight convention. He turned out to be pretty creepy, being completely obsessed with vampires. Uh, no thanks. I was through with my vampire phase back in middle school.

That's alright though. I appreciate the fact that they tried so hard to make me happy. However, it's probably best that I go out to seek my other half myself . . . But I'm not really in a hurry though. I know we'll meet eventually.

Or maybe not.

Best case scenario, we won't meet until I'm in or done with college. There are a lot of things I want to accomplish in the future. After that, I'll have time to pursue happiness. Even though most students at my school have found their soulmates already . . .

But that's enough thinking about that subject. I'd better started on my music, even though my group members are missing at the moment . . .

I close my eyes and lose myself in the music.

•~•

 **Mathias**

Growing up, I didn't think about my soulmate that much. I mean, I knew we were going to meet one day, but it wasn't that important to me. I didn't have what other kids would call a "normal" upbringing. My parents weren't soulmates, they were non-believers back in their high school days. After one year of their marriage and having me, my dad discovered his soulmate. He ended up leaving us to be with him instead, crushing my mother's rebellious spirit. I still see him at least twice a year, but after our move from Denmark, it's probably going to be phone calls and Skyping for a while.

Unfortunately, after their separation, my mom grew bitter about soulmates and raised me alone. I'm glad that I was there for her to take care of, or she might've gone over to the dark side. Together we've been through hard times, always at each other's back, living as happy as we could be.

Things got better after she got transferred to a new job in America, which unexpectedly helped her find her soulmate, who happened to be Berwald's dad. She had been nervous and uncertain about it at first, but I gave her encouragement. I wanted nothing more for her to be happy after all of these years.

And after seeing Berwald with his soulmate, I couldn't help but think that it'd be nice if I could find my other half soon.

Now, Berwald, his childhood was kinda like mine. His dad married his childhood friend, a soul-less girl. Apparently he had promised to marry her if he hadn't found his soulmate, my mom, by age 25. But, she died after giving birth to Berwald, leaving them alone. At least Berwald managed to find Tina.

So, we ended up moving in with Berwald and his dad, and I had to transfer to his school too. I was okay with it, but I was going to miss my old school. It was an all-boys school, but I knew some of them transferred to my new school after they found their soulmates. Maybe I'll have a better chance of finding my soulmate here too! Berwald can help, since I'm pretty sure he gets along with everyone at his school.

"Thanks! See you tomorrow!"

I smiled and waved the coach goodbye. I was definitely in the team. Even though I was just transferring to this school tomorrow, when Berwald mentioned that someone on his soccer team got seriously injured during practice, I knew I had to take a chance.

And I was right. The coach was more than happy to take me on as a substitute player after seeing what I could do on the field.

Since practice was almost over, I turned to Berwald and his soulmate, Tina. I was surprised to see how different they were from each other. I was expecting a grump like him, but Tina turned out to be a bubbly, cheerful blonde girl with shining lavender eyes. Berwald is a 5"11 giant with a terrifying face. And they seemed to fit together. How awesome is that?

"Oh!" Tina gasped suddenly, looking at her phone, "It's this late already?!" She turned to Berwald. "Ber-ber, did you see Luna leave yet?"

"No, I haven't," he replied before heading over to the locker rooms.

"Who?" I couldn't stop myself from asking. Curiosity will probably be the death of me one day, but in this case, I think I have the right to know.

Not all knowledge is bad.

"My cousin." Tina answered while rapidly texting, "She's giving me a ride home today, since she's practicing her music after school. Uh . . . I'm supposed to meet up with her, but I have to go turn in a late assignment. She's going to be so mad at me. . ." she muttered to herself guiltily before flashing a smile at me. "You'll meet her tomorrow."

Well, if Luna was as nice as her cousin, I would be more than happy to meet her. I told her so and she laughed at that. "Well, she doesn't really like to talk or meet new people, what with the people I've been introducing her to, but I'm sure she'll be surprised to know that you're Berwald's step-brother-to-be."

"I can't wait to meet her then," I grinned, half wondering what kind of people did Tina introduce her to. I noticed that Berwald was stuck between escorting his soulmate with driving us home right away, so I decided to do him a favor and said. "Hey guys, I'ma go and wait in the parking lot, okay?"

Berwald frowned at my decision. "Are you sure? The school's pretty big, you know. You could get lost—"

"It's fine!" I cut him off cheerfully. "I remember where it's at!" I mean, I think I do. If not, then I can ask someone for directions, right?

"Well, if you say so . . ." He didn't look like he believed me, but he still let me off. Pfft, he probably thinks that I'm gonna ask him for help. As if!

"Bye!"

I walk off with the school map, heading towards the nearest building. According to the map, this was the music building. I stop under the shade of the building to look at the piece of paper carefully. If the music building was here, then how far was the parking lot?

The last thing I expected was someone flying out of the building to crash into me.

•~•

The buzz of my phone called my attention. Pulling it out from my pocket, I saw a text message from Tina. Oh, shoot. It was this late already?! I quickly fired off a response before cramming my stuff into my bag.

Swinging my bag onto my shoulder, I hurried out of the room and straight down the stairs. I silently cursed to myself when my elbow hit the rail in my hurry. Why didn't we have an elevator in this building?

All the blame went to Mr. Vargas for playing favorites, giving the band priority by having the band rooms on the first floor, while orchestra had to suffer carrying instruments up the stairs. Our music teacher, Mr. Edelstein, tried his best, but we were stuck with this arrangement. I somewhat felt bad for those with larger string instruments, but at least they got the second floor.

Since I play both piano and violin, I was stuck on the third floor.

As I started on my next flight of stairs, I started to worry about Emil. Was he alright? By now he should be waiting outside the car, chatting or texting with Leona. I could see him impatiently tapping his foot, pouting with an annoyed look on his face.

Tina would be waiting with him as well, since Berwald couldn't give her a ride home today. I forgot why exactly, but I think it was something about his family. Oh well, at least she'll protect Emil from anyone who wants to pick on him or something.

I picked up my pace, now racing down the last of the stairs, my hair flowing behind me. With one hand on my bag and the other slipping on my sunglasses, I sprinted towards the exit.

The reason why I wore sunglasses was that the building had really dim lighting to preserve the detail and quality of the inside. As a result, whenever I went outside, I had to wear sunglasses or have the blinding sun hurt my eyes.

I practically flew out of the doors—only to slam into some idiot standing right outside. Evidently, I was running with enough force to knock someone over, so we both fell to the ground. My face smacked against some paper, and my sunglasses pushed painfully against my eyes.

"Ompfh!" I heard him grunt underneath my weight.

"Oww," I groaned, pulling away from him to sit up. Seriously, who is stupid enough to stand in front of an exit? I looked down to see that I'm currently sitting on a guy I've never seen before at school. He was wearing a uniform from

"What were you doing—"

My breath caught in my throat once I had a good look at his face. It wasn't his spiked blond hair, or his chiseled jawline, or the charming confused look on his face that made me freeze.

No, it was his eyes.

The moment I looked into his eyes, the whole world seemed to slow down in time. Pressure built up in my lungs, I couldn't breathe, and yet . . .

I felt safe, warm, complete, and _whole_.

Helplessly, I couldn't do anything but watch as his light stormy gray eyes faded into a shining sky blue.

This person . . . couldn't be my soulmate, could he?

Unfortunately, the universe had to answer my question by flooding my mind with memories from the past. I saw us walking together, talking to each other, ice-skating and even raising Emil together. We were once merpeople, dragons, vampires and vikings. I remembered _everything_.

This couldn't be happening to me. Not now. I could see my plans falling to pieces before me, ruined with his appearance.

What was I going to do now?

We stayed like that for a while, in shock I guess, staring into the other's eyes until he finally let out a breathless laugh. "Um," he began somewhat awkwardly, "You wouldn't happen to—?"

"Sorry!" I cut him off, scrambling to get off of him. I don't know why I interrupted him, but something within me feared the words that left his mouth. Well, not really feared. More like expected, anticipated, wanted—

That scared me.

I dusted myself off, not daring to look at him in the eyes again. God, that was an embarrassing position to be in. I'm glad that no one was around to witness that particular moment of my life. Otherwise, I'd be forced to acknowledge him. I didn't have time for that, or so I thought.

My mistake.

Grabbing my bag from the ground, I rush to my car, my heart pounding out a beat loudly in my ears.

No, no, no!

I didn't look back.

•~•

I couldn't do anything but watch the girl run away, winded from the collision and . . . that weird thing that just happened between us.

What was that? Who was she? Why was she running away? Most importantly being my first question: you wouldn't happen to know where the school parking lot, would you?

I kinda felt like chasing after her so she could answer my questions, but that probably wasn't the best idea I ever had. It might leave a bad impression on her. . . not that our first meeting was pretty memorable to begin with. I sat up and thought about that mysterious girl.

She was pretty strong to knock me over. For a second there, I thought she was some kind of Angel of death, with her long pale blonde hair, black ripped skull shirt, shredded jeans, tall black boots, along with chains and black leather wrapped around her arms and a black string with a silver crescent moon around her neck.

Not to mention that, well, she was beautiful, like a model.

I shook my head and laughed to myself. Okay, maybe I've been watching too much anime lately—but hey! You can't really blame me for thinking that. It was practically a cliché come true, with a girl falling out of the sky upon the main protagonist, which would be me. All that was missing was her claiming my soul and me in some kind of contract with a demon. For all I knew, that could be what happened just now.

But, I don't think angels of death apologize after landing on their victims, so there goes that theory. Also, she probably would have left by flying away on black wings or something, not running. Still, I checked my arms and face for any signs or markings, just in case.

Nope, nothing. Oh well.

I got up and brushed dirt and grass off my uniform. While I definitely won't miss wearing it, since at this school there's no dress code, I still have to return it to my old school. I wince at a few grass stains. Hopefully, I don't have to do laundry when I get home . . .

Picking up the map once more, I was about to walk away when something shiny caught my eye a few feet away. I made my way over to get a closer look and picked it up. It was a silver cross hair clip. Turning it over, I saw initials: L. B.

Did this belong to her?

Well, if she was a student here, then I can give it back to her tomorrow if we had any classes together. If not, then I can ask Berwald. Yeah, that sounds like a great idea! For now, I placed it in my pocket and headed to the main buildings. There must be somebody who knows where the parking lot is!

As I walked, I kept my eyes on the map, trying to figure out where I was at. I didn't look at my surroundings much, which was probably how I bumped into her.

"Ahhhhhh!" she yelped, dropping her bag and binder. Papers went flying everywhere. Her bag was open and her things spilled out, rolling all over the floor.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" I said, dropping to my knees to help her pick up her stuff. We worked in silence until we reached for a small box at the same time, and she flinched when her hand met mine, knocking it to the floor. The box hit the ground, releasing a plume of shining powder.

Among the glittery mess our eyes met. Or, at least I think they did, since she was wearing sunglasses too. Were they some kind of trend here?

She gasped and scooted back, shaking and pointing a trembling finger at me.

"W-what?" I asked, feeling somewhat self-conscious. First, it was that punk chick, and now this. Was I really that scary? However, the last thing I expected was said out loud.

"You're my soulmate."

Um . . . _What?_

I stared at her in confusion. "Excuse me?" I asked her blankly.

She shook her head and let out a laugh. "It's true! Look!" She pulled off her sunglasses, and I could see her wide . . . green eyes.

Then she picked up the box and opened it before handing it to me. Cradling it in my hands, I looked into a mirror to see that my eyes were blue, like the sky. Cool!

Wait, since both our eyes are colored now, that means . . .

This girl is my soulmate.

I looked back at her. Now that I had a good look at her, she was pretty cute. Not as beautiful as the girl before, but clearly attractive in her own way. Besides green eyes, she had short brown hair curled on the ends and a red headband.

Then I realized that she was waiting for my response while I was just staring at her. Feeling my face heat up, I smiled at her and held out my hand.

"I'm Mathias. It's nice to meet you. Can you tell me where is the parking lot?"

•~•

Even though I was late only by a mere five minutes, that didn't stop Emil from saying, "What took you so long?" without looking up from his phone. Well, to be fair, I did raise him to be punctual at all times . . . but it wasn't my fault I was this late! It was because of that idiot in my way—

Who just happened to be my soulmate.

I shook my head and apologized, "Sorry. I ran into someone on the way here. If it weren't for him, I would've been here earlier." As I spoke, I wiped the sweat off my brow and took off my sunglasses to do so.

Another mistake.

"Luna!" Tina gasped, "Your eyes! They're so pretty!"

"What?!" Emil whipped his head up from his phone to examine at my face. His violet eyes widened. "Luna, did you find your soulmate?!" They exclaimed together.

"Um . . . I guess?" I answered uncertainly. Well, I haven't actually confirmed it with him yet . . .

Emil rolled his eyes and passed me his phone. "Take a look for yourself."

I glanced down—and froze.

I looked like a different person. I mean, I still had my platinum blonde hair and delicate-looking features, and my usually pallid face was flushed pink from my run.

But the real change was in my eyes.

They were no longer the dull, dark gray I was used to seeing in my reflection. But they weren't the violet of Emil's eyes that I had been expecting, nor Tina's lavender. Instead, they were now a sparkling, deep dark blue—no, indigo color. Out of all the colors of the world, this was my true eye color.

I loved it.

Unexpectedly, they brought a much-needed color to my face that I never knew I lacked. Before, I was a pale outcast, faded like a ghost. I preferred to wear the monochromatic shades of black, gray, white and everything in between. Now, it looked like I was going to add a new color to my wardrobe.

"So . . ." Tina coughed, forcing me to tear eyes away from my reflection, "Who's your soulmate?" She bounced on her heels excitedly while Emil stared at me expectantly.

Oh, right. Him. I resist the urge to groan as I explained, "To be honest, I've never seen him before today, so I don't know him. He's probably a new kid here or something."

"Oh, really?" Tina commented with a smug look on her face. "What does he look like?"

"Well," I began slowly, thinking back on my encounter and feeling my face heat up as I remembered, "He has crazy spiked blond hair, a really nice smile, wearing a school uniform, amazing sky blue eyes—" I broke off when I noticed her smirk.

Things were never good when she smiled like that, a Finnish Cheshire cat. I narrowed my eyes suspiciously at her, my internal radar going off. Something was up. "Why, do you know him?

"Maybe~" Her eyes twinkled with mischief. "We'll find out for sure tomorrow!"

Tomorrow? Oh, right. If he really is going to be a student at our school, then I won't be able to hide from him if we had any classes together. My heart raced at the thought. Shaking my head, I unlocked the car and got inside, starting the engine.

"Oh, yeah!" Tina exclaimed as she buckled in her seat belt, "We definitely have to let Alice know, too!" She pulled out her phone and hummed happily as she tapped out the good news to our friend who had missed out. I sighed and exchanged an eye roll with Emil. He offered me a small smile before he returned to his phone as well.

Well, it couldn't be helped, could it? I switched gears and looked into the rearview mirror to carefully back out of my parking spot. My newly colored eyes sparkled back at me. There was no avoiding it now.

He was my soulmate.

•~•

When I finally found Berwald at the parking lot, he drove us to his–I mean _our_ house. Berwald's house was pretty nice, located in a quiet neighborhood and filled with IKEA furniture. I wasn't used to it yet.

My mom was in the kitchen baking. "Welcome home, boys!" she greeted us as we walked in. "How was the tour?"

"It was great!" I said, walking over to see what she was making. Mm, cookies. I picked one up and continued, "The school's bigger than my old one, and they're going to let me join the soccer team!"

"That's good to hear! I just know you're going to love your new school—" She turned around to give me a hug and stopped when she saw my eyes. "Matthias!" Mom gasped, "You . . . found your soulmate?!"

"Um, yeah," I grinned at her sheepishly. "I was just getting to that . . ."

I shared her eye color, which made the both of us happy. I hated whenever I had traits that painfully reminded her of Dad, so this was an unexpected plus.

"That's _amazing_!" she squealed. Quickly, she pulled me into a bear hug, bringing in Berwald too. It was awkward at first, but he eventually accepted it and wrapped his arms around us. "I knew coming to America would bring great things for us. Tonight we have to celebrate!"

She finally let go to reach for the phone. Berwald made a beeline for the exit. "I'm going to tell everyone about this!" By everyone, I was pretty sure that included a phone call to Dad, and I definitely didn't want to stick around for that.

As I was about to leave the room, Mom grabbed my arm. "Oh, right. Sweetheart, who is your soulmate?"

"My soulmate's a girl who I accidentally bumped into during the tour," I told her absentmindedly, remembering how it happened. "Her eyes . . ."

For some reason, my mind went back to when I got ran over by that girl wearing sunglasses. That's weird . . .

Shaking my head, I shrugged and said, "She's nice. You'll meet her later."

•~•

The next morning, I couldn't find my silver cross clip. My parents gave it to me after my first performance in sixth grade. It was really important to me, being a _very_ important family heirloom. They liked to joke that it was from our ancestors back in the Viking Ages, but now I knew better.

The cross clip was originally mine from one of my past lives. _I_ had passed it down to my family. It was rightfully _mine_.

And, it had been a gift from _him_.

I tore through the house searching for it, looking everywhere: my room, the bathroom, the living room. I was investigating the kitchen after a cup of coffee when Emil walks in looking adorably sleepy in his sleepwear.

"Good morning," I greeted him from under the dining table. "Do you know where my hair clip is?"

"Which one?" he asks wryly, pouring himself a cup. He can be pretty sarcastic in the mornings, which was still cute. Though it was annoying sometimes, like today. I rolled my eyes even though he couldn't see and said, "You know which one I mean. The silver cross I was wearing yesterday?" I got up and dusted myself off. It wasn't in the kitchen . . .

"I haven't seen it." He yawns and scratches his head. "Are you sure you wore it yesterday? You didn't have it on when we got home."

"Of course I was wearing it yesterday . . ." I drifted off as I tried to remember. I definitely had it on yesterday when I was practicing. But maybe . . . it fell off when I crashed into my soulmate? Oh no. I have to get it back!

I ran out the door with my keys, slipping on my sunglasses as I went. As I started the car, I heard Emil call out in confusion, "Where are you going?"

"To school!" I responded, backing out of the driveway. "Get a ride from Leona or one of your friends."

I had to get it back.

•~•

I ended up spending the rest of the morning looking in front of the music building to no avail. It wasn't there. I checked the lost and found as well, but no one brought a cross clip there either. Someone might have picked it up earlier, but I hope that they'll be willing to return it to me. In the meantime, I might have to make some posters and offer a reward or something.

I barely made it to first period before the second bell. To my surprise and maybe a little disappointment, my soulmate wasn't in my class. Well, that's okay. I mean, we could have other classes together, right?

He wasn't in my next class either. Or the next. Or the one after that.

But in between classes, I heard people whispering about a new kid in school. About how nice and friendly he was, and some even sighing about his colored eyes. They had no chance with him now since he had already found his soulmate. Me.

I tried not to smirk and focused on our inevitable next meeting. Lunch was next, and that would be a good time to claim him, right? In front of everyone.

In front of an audience. Um. I can do this, I think. As long as he was there, there was no need for me to be afraid. As long as he was mine and I was his. It would be fine.

I hope.

There was a reason why I avoided crowds of people. I couldn't stand having any sort of attention on myself. If I was with friends then it was fine, I was safe. But alone . . .

This is going to be quite a challenge.

Walking into the lunchroom, with my sunglasses safely in place, I scanned the grounds for him. Oh, there he was! I'd recognized that blond mess of hair anywhere, right by some classmates. I headed over to make my entrance, my feet walking faster as I got near. But as I came closer, he shifted over to talk with someone, revealing someone sitting next to him.

Someone with her arms around _my_ soulmate.

She had short brown hair, a red bow headband, and– _green eyes?_ Bella?

I blinked a few times in surprise. What was _she_ doing there?

I turned and spotted Lovina sitting nearby on her phone. She was waiting for her soulmate, Antonio, to bring their lunch over, which would more than likely contain tomatoes. I could ask her. I tapped on her shoulder and stepped back.

"What do you want?" she snapped before looking up to see it was me. "Oh, hey Luna. What's up?"

"Um," I pointed over to my soulmate's table, "Can you tell me what you think of Bella and the new kid?"

She turned her head to take a look. "Ew," Lovina muttered, "Looks like another pair of soulmates found each other." She turned back to her phone, disinterested. My spirits sank.

Them, soulmates? It couldn't be . . .

And yet as I turned back to face them, I saw her plant a kiss on his cheek.

Everything went black.


	2. Problems

A/N: So, here we are, our second chapter~! I'm not really sure how long exactly is a chapter supposed to be. (Is 5,309 words too long? Halp) Used to be 6592; now 1/2

This chapter is dedicated to **a walk through shadows** for the first review~! The past lives won't show up until a few more chapters, so hang on until then. xD

* * *

Reflections, We Are the In Crowd

 _I think I've seen you before._

 _Another time, another face_

 _Whoever opened the door_

 _Never had the time to waste._

•~•

 **Luna**

I felt the dampness of a cool, soaked tissue wiping my face. It was kinda gross though, so I pulled away. When I opened my eyes, I saw that I was surrounded by tall, gray walls. I was in the girls' room somehow. How did I get in here? I looked up to see that Tina was holding the napkin while Alice and Lovina watched over her shoulders with worried expressions. Their eyes widened upon seeing my eyes, but Tina's relief shone through their shock.

"Luna! Thank goodness! Are you alright? What happened?" she asks me in concern. I closed my eyes, not willing to answer. The reality was too painful.

Him, with her.

"Did you skip breakfast again?" Alices questioned me. I had, but that wasn't the cause of my anguish. Lovina rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I want a reason why we had to drag your sorry ass here, passing out in the cafeteria!"

I didn't want to tell them. It hurt so much inside. But, they did deserve an explanation. So, with my eyes still closed, I told them what happened.

Least to say, their reaction was exactly what I had expected.

"She did what?!" Lovina screeched. She rolled up her sleeves and headed towards the exit, Alice right behind her. "When I get my hands on that bitch I'm going to-!" They bumped shoulders and stopped to glare at the other.

"Woah there!" Tina got up to grab their shoulders. "Calm down, girls!"

"No!" Lovina snarled, "I refuse to calm down!"

To my surprise, Alice nods in agreement. Normally, they don't get along, because something happened in their past I think, but they're together in this situation. "She's right! Do you not _see_ what that tea bag has done to our Luna?!"

"Of course I do!" My cousin unexpectedly snaps back, her normally cheerful lavender eyes flashing. "But as much as I want to go beat the living shit out of her, we have to face the facts. We can't just go and accuse her of stealing Luna's soulmate."

"That's because it's never been done before!" The angry Italian retaliated.

"That's true . . ." Alice admits. "I've seen Bella's eyes. They were a bright green. I doubt that contacts are able to produce that vivid of a color."

Lovina lets out a frustrated growl. "Then what are we supposed to do?!"

We sat in silence for a while, her question echoing off the walls. Finally, Tina spoke up. "Well, we could confront Bella and get her to explain herself."

That sounded reasonable, but before we could agree on that plan, the door opened. We turned to see the girl herself walk in the restroom.

Four angry pairs of colored eyes greeted her, each with its own unique death glare.

"You," Lovina hissed, taking a step toward our intruder. "Who do you think you are, taking Luna's soulmate like that!"

Welp, there goes our plan. But to our surprise, Bella only smirks. "What do you mean?" she asks ever-so-innocently. "He's my soulmate."

Lovina turns so red from anger, it's almost too bad that Antonio isn't here to see. Before she could explode, Alice cuts in. "No, he's not! Luna already told us everything. By all rights, they belong together!"

"That's right!" Tina finally gives in to her rage. "How'd you manage to convince him that he was yours?!"

"Well," she continued, still smirking smugly, and leaned against the towel-dispenser, "I guess I should tell you since Luna did give us a lovely fainting performance earlier-" Bella snickered while I clenched my hands "-and there's nothing you can do about it."

"You little-!" Lovina lunges at her, but Alice catches her in time and holds her back. She settles for narrowing her fierce amber eyes at Bella.

"Go on. Tell us."

•~•

 _To paint pictures over windows_

 _That don't satisfy our taste._

 _It's so convenient to lose the truth_

 _When it's laughing in your face._

•~•

 **Bella**

I had been excited that day. After wandering around the mall for a few hours, I managed to find my soulmate. He worked at a newly opened cafe that my friends had recommended it to me. Little did I know that I was going to find him there!

We spent a few hours together, learning about each other. Unfortunately, he didn't attend my school, but didn't matter to me. then I had to leave when the cafe got busy during rush hour, but we made plans to meet up the next day.

I rushed back to my school, hoping to brag to someone about my soulmate. I decided to shove my news in Luna's face, since I knew she hadn't found her soulmate yet. That, and because she and her annoying group, Siren's Voice, had defeated my team of cheerleaders in last year's Talent Show. Besides, I knew she stayed after school every day. It was the perfect set-up.

Walking outside the music building, I planned out what to say:

 _Me: Hey Luna! Guess what~?_

 _Luna: What?_

 _Me: *Casually pulling off my sunglasses* I found my soulmate!_

 _Luna: Really? *insanely jealous* Who is it?_

 _Me: Oh, he doesn't go here. You'll meet him later~_

 _Luna: So it'll be a long-distance relationship? Wow, lucky you._

. . . Wait. No, that isn't how our conversation's supposed to go! I gritted my teeth in frustration. I was still trying to figure out what to say when I noticed a boy walking up and stopping in front of the music building's entrance. He was actually pretty good-looking, with his blond spiked hair, tall figure and gray eyes, but not as handsome as my soulmate.

What? Just because I found my soulmate it doesn't mean I can't appreciate the looks of another guy.

He looked like a lost puppy, actually frowning at the map in his hands. I was about to walk over to introduce myself and help him out, when Luna came rushing out the doors and knocked him down to the ground. It would have been a hilarious moment had I not witnessed the moment when they looked at each other. His eyes changed to the blue of the sky while Luna's were hidden by her sunglasses.

Oh, _shoot_. They were _soulmates_. There goes my plans . . . I no longer have bragging rights.

Or so I thought, when Luna just got up and ran like hell away. The guy watched her go with a mixture of awe and surprise, without trying to follow. Did they not realize what just happened to them? He looked like he had no clue that she was his other half.

But that gave me an idea. If Luna hadn't claimed him as her soulmate, then _I_ would. That way, he wouldn't be confused about his eye color, and I wouldn't be alone at school. Even though many kids at school had soulmates at other schools, I didn't want to be one of them. Besides, there was no way for my real soulmate to find out; he _did_ attend a different school after all. This time, my plan was fool-proof.

So, I followed him as soon as he got up, and waited for the best moment to crash into him. (The rest, you already know.)

•~•

 _Destiny is overrated_

 _So I think I'll write my own._

 _I don't believe it's complicated_

 _So I think I'll stay at home._

•~•

When Bella finished her story, everyone stared at her in disbelief.

"So, what you're saying is . . ." Alice said slowly, " . . . that you're taking advantage of the situation just because you didn't want to be alone."

"Something like that," She smirked.

"Why you!" This time, Alice goes for her, but Lovina holds her back. "Let me get at her!" she yelled.

Bella openly cackled at her struggles. "But what can you do? The whole school already thinks he's my soulmate." She makes a show out of looking at her phone. "Oh, no! Look at the time. The bell's going to ring soon, and he's waiting for _me_ outside." Throwing the last words at me as a taunt, she goes out the door just as the bell rings.

Lovina finally lets go of Alice, who glares and rubs her arms. "That hurt, you twat!" Tina sighs and gets another paper towel. She drenches it with water from the sink before handing it to me. "Here. Wash your face and we'll go to class, okay?"

I blink and reach for my face, surprised to feel tears falling from my eyes. Accepting her offering, I stagger over to the mirror and cleaned up the best I could. As I redid my makeup, I thought about what Bella had told us.

I couldn't believe that she held a grudge against us—well, me—over a silly talent show. We hadn't even taken it seriously, performing however we wanted. It just happened to win the most votes. But I guess it meant a lot to her, enough for her to claim my other half.

When I was done, slipping on my sunglasses to complete the look, we headed to our next class, English. Luckily, it was close-by, or else we would've been late. As we walked, they thought of ways to get back at Bella. Tina suggested we egg her car. Alice wanted to vandalize her locker. Lovina came up with stealing her cheer-uniform and ruining it by shredding it to pieces.

With their ideas, each getting more crazy and impossible than the last, I started to feel better. Just a bit. My problem still loomed over me like an oncoming storm.

How was I supposed to get my soulmate back?

We turned at the corner to Room 69, where Mrs. Elizabeta waited for us at the entrance. "Good-afternoon, ladies~!"

"Hey, Mrs. E!" They greeted her. I stayed silent and headed to my desk right away so I could put my head down. Normally I enjoyed this class, watching our teacher rant about books, literature, movies and her ships, but I just wanted to be alone right now. Hopefully, we weren't doing anything important today . . .

Unfortunately, fate had it in for me, for no sooner did I put my head down did she exclaim in a loud voice, "Oh, hello there! Are you new here?"

"Yes, I am, ma'am," a deep yet familiar voice answered her. It couldn't be, could it? But it sounded a lot like . . . Oh, no . . . Not _him! Not now!_ I silently hoped that he was just lost and asking for directions. "This is Mrs. Edelstein-Héderváry's English Literature class, right?"

"Yes, this is~" she trilled. Oh, god. Why? "Come inside and introduce yourself to the class!"

I jerked my head up just in time to see him walk in the class. Yup, destiny just _loved_ to mess with me. I'd recognize that spiky blond hair, blinding white smile, but most importantly, those glorious blue eyes anywhere.

"Hey guys!" He greeted the class. "My name's Matthias Kohler. I just transferred here from—"

"Oh, I think I recognize that accent!" Our beloved English teacher interrupted him excitedly. "You wouldn't happen to be from Denmark, would you?"

"Ja!" He smiled at her, a little taken back from her enthusiasm, I think. Well, he'd better get used to it. She was always this upbeat, everyday, no matter what.

"Wonderful!" Mrs. Elizabeta clapped her hands. "For it so happens that our next unit takes place in Denmark!"

"Ah," Alice spoke up with a knowing glint in her emerald eyes, "It wouldn't happen to be what I think it is, would it, Mrs. E?"

She grinned at Alice as she walked back to her desk. "Yes, as it so happens, Ms. Kirkland, it is!" Dramatically pulling a book from a drawer, our teacher proclaimed, "Class, this month we'll be working with _Hamlet_!"

The whole class groaned in unison half-heartedly, seeing as we really didn't have a choice, save for Alice's triumphant smirk and my soulmate, no, _Matthias_ ' comment, "That sounds like fun!" Maybe because we were going to be talking about his homeland.

"It is!" Mrs. Elizabeta agreed, beaming at him. Then she let out an embarrassed laugh once she realized he was still standing in front of the class. "But first, we need to have you seated!" As her eyes scanned the room in search of where to put him, I slouched in my seat. There was an empty seat next to me, a cliché of all clichés, but it belonged to Hercules, who probably was still asleep in the cafeteria.

There was no way he was going to sit next me to of all people—

"Why don't you sit next to Luna! She can help you get to speed with the rest of us. Luna, please raise your hand~"

. . . well, screw it. It's official.

I hate fate.

•~•

 _I followed the leader_

 _Now I just follow myself._

 _Destiny is overrated_

 _So I think I'll write my own._

•~•

 **Matthias**

Hey, what do you know? My first day here wasn't too bad! Everyone was really nice, and I recognized some of my old classmates. They let me sit with them at lunch and Bella helped me find my English class.

I wasn't sure about this class though, since I've heard tons of stuff from my new classmates. They said she was crazy, nosy and hyper, but I think she's okay. After all, we were kinda going to learn about Denmark!

Wait . . . Luna? Wasn't that the name of Tina's cousin? I looked around for her hand expectantly; I was finally going to meet her!

To my surprise, when I spotted her hand, I recognized the girl attached to it. It was that girl who ran into me yesterday, dark shades and all! She wasn't looking at me though, preferring the view out the window with her hand in the air. I wonder if she remembered me. We didn't have any classes together earlier. Was she embarrassed about what happened yesterday?

I made my over to my new seat and pulled out my chair. It made a loud, awkward screeching noise, which made her flinch, bringing her hand down. I turned to my new classmate and smiled. Maybe she was just shy?

"So, you're Luna?"

Slowly, she turned to face the front and nodded, finally acknowledging me. "That's a pretty nice name," I continued, not bothered by her silence. It kinda reminded me of the many conversations I had with Berwald before. "It's nice to meet you!"

"Sure," she finally responded, flatly. She still didn't look at me. Well, that was a letdown. Tina was right; she really didn't like people. We sat in awkward silence for a while, until our teacher came around and handed us our books. Luna opened it right away and started to flip through the pages.

I didn't know what to say, so I shoved my hands into my pockets. My hands felt something cool and thin. Pulling it out, I saw it was the cross clip I found yesterday. Oh, right. I should ask her. Sneaking a glance, I saw that she was still absorbed in the book. Well, here goes nothing. I held it out and asked:

"Is this yours?"

She hadn't expected me to talk to her, because she flinched again. Turning slowly, she let out a small noise of surprise when she saw what I was holding.

"It is." Luna turned to look at me at last. I couldn't tell what her expression was with her sunglasses. "How'd you find it?" Her voice was careful and accusing.

"Well," I chuckled awkwardly, rubbing the back of my neck with my free hand, "It caught my eye after our collision yesterday." She nodded once, accepting my explanation. I held it out to her. "Here."

She reached for it, but I couldn't help but flinch when her cool fingers lightly grazed mine. She quickly snatched it and turned away, fixing it back on her hair. We sat in silence again. She looked better with the clip back on. It caught the light and gleamed brightly.

" . . . Thank you."

I blinked in surprise, not expecting that. "You're welcome!" I managed to reply, trying to suppress a smile. At least she didn't seem to be that bad.

•~•

 _I know I've been here before_

 _But I can't find, the time or place._

 _If we stay in the past_

 _There'll be no future left to waste._

•~•

We sat in adequate silence looking through our books until our English teacher clapped her hands again. "Alright, class! That should be enough time for you to look through the story. It's time to assign roles~ Remember, you can volunteer or nominate a classmate! Who would like to read for Hamlet?"

To everyone's surprise, Matthias is the first to raise his hand. "I do!" he called out excitedly. Everyone stared at him in shock and amusement while Mrs. E smiled at him happily. "I like your enthusiasm!" she cheered as she wrote his name on the board. She turned back to the class expectantly. "Does anyone want to challenge Matthias for the role?"

The room was silent. As the main character, Hamlet had the most lines in the book, and no one wanted to memorize that many lines. The memories of our last Shakespeare unit, _Romeo an_ _d Juliet_ , still scarred us all.

"Okay then, who wants to play Ophelia?" Mrs. E asked the classroom.

Once again, only silence answered. Since it was known by now that Matthias had a cheerleader soulmate, no one wanted to risk the wrath of the cheer-squad.

Finally, Alice raised her hand. "Oh? Are you volunteering, Ms. Kirkland?" Mrs. E asked her hopefully. Unfortunately, Alice shook her head. "No, I'm not. But I know someone who can." I didn't see the mischevious look in her eyes. "I nominate Luna!"

. . . _What?_

I shot a glare at her, but she only smirked back at me. No, I couldn't! Raising my hand again, I tried to refuse the role, but it was too late.

"That's a wonderful idea, Alice!" Our teacher chirped in agreement, already writing my name on the board.

Great, just _great_. Now I was stuck with him for a month. I put my head back down, letting out a quiet sigh. Matthias didn't seem to notice my suffering, saying cheerfully, "I looking forward to working with you!"

His smile blew me away. I tried my best to not look at him.

Didn't he know that _Hamlet_ was a tragedy?


	3. Reflections of the Soul

_Pinning paper wings on problems_

 _Hoping that they'll fly away._

 _Turn our backs, ignore the truth_

 _If they can't support the weight._

 _We Are the In Crowd,_ Reflections (cont.)

•~•

 **Luna**

When everyone was finally assigned a role, our class time was almost over. I started to pack up my stuff, shoving _Hamlet_ into my bag, when I heard Matthias say, "Hey, Luna?"

It really got on my nerves how my body reacted whenever he said my name. I wanted to melt into nothingness just from the sound of his voice. Well, it was only second time, but _still_. I turned to him, unwillingly. Looking straight at him would only risk my composure, so I kept my eyes on the right side of his head at the poster behind him. "What?" I asked, fighting back the urge to shiver and to keep my voice emotionless.

"What class do you have next?" was his question. I really didn't want to tell him anything about myself, but it couldn't hurt. "World History."

"Me too!" He beamed at me, practically sparkling with happiness. Thankfully, I was wearing shades, or else I could've been blinded. . . Wait, no, if my eyes didn't hurt, then my chest sure did. _Ughhh._ "Can you show me the way there?"

Inwardly, I groaned. We had _another_ class together? It made me happy, if you called this pain _happiness_ , but I don't think I could stand to be so close to him again.

But, manners were manners. "Sure, why not?" I gritted out, and headed out the door as soon as the bell rang. He kept up with me every step of the way, chattering about his day and what he liked about school. Trying my best to tune him out, I focused on our path to the next class. Luckily, he was seated away from me in the front of the classroom, while I had a place in the back. But, that meant that he was still in my line of vision. Every time I looked up to see the board, there was my soulmate. It was so irritating.

I would have screamed if it turned out that we had the last class of the day together, but fortunately it wasn't so. He had Pre-Calculus while I had Economics. I directed him to the Math building and sighed with relief once he was out of my sight. If this was how the rest of year was going to be, I had no idea how I was going to survive.

At least the last class went by smoothly. As soon as I was free I quickly made my way to the Music building for practice.

On my way there, I found Alice, Alfred, Tina, Berwald, and, of course, Matthias. "Hey, Luna!" He called out to me, waving his arms around. "We're heading to the fields. Wanna watch?"

"No," I responded, careful not to look at him, "I have to practice."

"Oh, right," Tina laughed nervously. "I almost forgot we have a gig coming up soon."

"You better have been practicing." I narrowed my eyes at her. "If you mess up again like last time . . ." Technically, a threat like that was unnecessary, but from her shaky gulp, I knew she would take me seriously. Sighing, I was about to walk off when I remembered something.

"Oh, Alice? Can I have a word with you? _Alone_ ," I stressed, noticing the group's curious looks, especially Matthias'. I pretended not to see his disappointed expression.

"Sure." She affectionately pecked her soulmate's cheek before moving to my side. "I'll catch up with you guys later."

Together, we went to one of our hangouts, the shady corner near the bathrooms. Nobody was around. Leaning against the wall, she turned to me. "Okay, what's up?"

"How could you do that to me in English?!" I demanded angrily, finally giving into my emotions. If Alice was shocked at my sudden outburst, she didn't show it, rolling her eyes at me. "What? If _your_ soulmate is going to play Hamlet, _you_ might as well be his Ophelia."

I scowled back at her. Like I hadn't thought of that. "You do realize that _Hamlet_ is a _tragedy_ , right? Or could you actually be mixing up great works of literature?"

"Your life is on the verge of becoming a tragedy if you don't do something about it!" She countered me. Touché. Alice was right though; I was ignoring the problem.

"Fine," I gave in with a sigh. It was just too much for me to handle. "But could you tell me how is being Ophelia going to help me?"

"Don't you see? This is your chance!" Alice placed a hand on my shoulder. I looked up to see her green eyes blazing with confidence. "Acting as Ophelia will bring you two closer. It might even trigger his memories, helping him remember that it's _you_ who is his other half!"

" . . . I guess," I said doubtfully. If he couldn't remember from just looking at _me_ , how would interactions work? My stomach squirmed from the slightest thought of it.

"Don't worry about it!" Alice laughed at my uneasy expression. I fought the urge to hit her. Easy for her to say; she never went through what _I_ was stuck with. "But if you want, you can come over to my place after school to do research on soulmates." She offered unexpectedly. I was touched; maybe she did understand after all.

"Sounds good. See you then." I waved her off as we parted ways, but then she paused and turned back. "Are you sure you don't want to come along to watch them practice?"

I was tempted, but . . . "You do know that Bella is going to be there, right?" That, and the fact that I knew little to nothing about soccer.

"Oh, right . . ." Alice frowned. "Well, I'll see you later then!"

But, after arriving at my room in the Music building (hello stairs!), I couldn't resist the desire to watch. By a strange twist of fate, the window of the room overlooked the sports fields. Coincidence? Ha, I think not.

Alice and Tina used to be happy sitting on the ledge and watching their soulmates from afar, but as time passed, they eventually left to get 'up close and personal.'

Now, I took their old place and watched our fellow classmates from above. Even though I had no idea what they were doing, I immediately spotted Matthias because of his hair. He seemed to be getting along with everyone, kicking the ball back and forth with Alfred, Berwald, and Gilbert.

Leaning against the windowsill, I had a quiet moment to myself to think. As I watched my soulmate, I wondered how did I end up with such a person. He seemed to love the outdoors, while I was more of an indoor person. He was open and friendly. I was closed and shut people out easily, save for family and the few friends I had.

Honestly, we were as different as night and day.

But then again, maybe the saying 'opposites attract' did tell the truth about soulmates. Afterall, grouchy Lovina was with cheerful Antonio. Tina and Feli, both social butterflies, were with caring and albeit intimidating guys. And no one would have expected Alfred F. Jones, the King of Jocks, to have a soulmate like Alice Kirkland, our lovely Queen of Darkness.

And now that I think about it, that described us perfectly, if we were ever meant to be that is.

Just then, high-pitched screaming caught my attention. Looking out, I saw Bella in her uniform, jumping and cheering from the far side of the field. Matthias noticed too, because he smiled and waved back at her. Watching them, I felt my stomach twist again. It wasn't right, for him to notice her and not me.

Turning away from the window, I threw myself into my music, pouring out the first song that popped into my mind, expressing my pain, frustration, and loneliness.

•~•

 _"Destiny is overrated_

 _So I think I'll write my own._

 _I don't believe it's complicated_

 _So I think I'll stay at home._

 _I'd followed the leade_ _r_

 _Now I just follow myself._

 _Destiny is overrated_

 _So I think I'll write my_ _own."_

•~•

After pouring out my heart and soul to no one, I made sure to keep an eye on the time so I wouldn't be late again. One less reason for my brother to complain, or so I thought. However, it seems like he found something else to complain about by the time we met up at my car. He began to rant about it after we got inside after I had asked him about his day. Something I regretted after listening to half of.

"Well," Emil began as I drove out of the parking lot, "There's a new kid in my class, right?"

"Uh-huh," I hummed, keeping my eyes on the road.

"Okay, so it turns out that he's in your grade, and he's only taking Pre-Calculus? That's really embarrassing!" My little brother continued.

"I see," I said absentmindedly as I changed lanes.

"And the thing is that Mr. Chen assigned me to help him out if he has any problems. Can you believe it? _Me_ , of all people in the class!" Emil huffed indignantly.

"Well," I said slowly, thinking about what he told me, "Aren't you one of the top students in the class? That shouldn't be too bad."

"No, duh," he grumbled, secretly pleased at my acknowledgment of his smarts, "but there's other people he could've asked! I don't want to waste my time helping him catch up with the rest of the class."

I laughed at that. "Too bad there's nothing you can do about it though," I pointed out.

"That's true . . ." he sighed, slumping in his seat. "At least I'll get extra credit. How was your day?"

How was my day? Now, that was a good question. I silently debated on what to tell him as I waited to make a right turn, finally deciding on, "It was alright, I guess. Gilbert caught fire in Chemistry, we watched a movie in World History, and . . ." I wracked my mind for other things that happened. Anything other than my internal suffering, of course.

"We've moved on to _Hamlet_ in English."

"Oh, really?" he asks only with a hint of interest. "Which part did you get?"

I snorted as I changed lanes again. "Would you believe me if I told you I got stuck with Ophelia, of all characters?"

"Nice." Emil snickered. "So who's Hamlet?"

"My soulmate, unfortunately."

"Right. That makes sense . . ." Then he suddenly jerked up, yelling, "Wait, WHAT?!" causing me to slam on the breaks. Luckily, it had been a yellow light, but a few cars honked at me. I ignored them, turning to my brother. "What?"

"I forgot you found your soulmate yesterday!" he facepalmed. "Who is it? What classes do you have together? When will I meet your other half?!"

"Woah there," I chuckled at his curiosity. "Calm down lil' bror." I finally pulled up to our driveway and parked the car. "I already told you what he looks like. He's in my English and World History classes." I paused to think. "Actually, I'm not even sure if you'll know him since he's in my grade. But don't worry, you'll meet him later."

"Okay," he said, but the look he gave me said he wasn't going to let go of this subject anytime soon. Emil changed the subject though. "So, do you want me to help you memorize your lines?" Emil, being a little bookworm, had already read _Hamlet_ and most of Shakespeare's works. I blamed my parents and Alice's influence. Before social media, Leona's fault by the way, he read books for fun and could recite lines by heart. Still, it did come in handy sometimes, as in our _Romeo and Juliet_ work last semester.

"If you have time for that, that'll be great," I told him gratefully. "Okay," he repeated and opened the door to get out of the car.

"But not right now," I added. "I'm going to Alice's place to work on stuff, so make sure you finish all your homework before going on _any_ social media."

"Yeah, yeah, I know, _Mom_ ," he rolled his eyes and waved me off. "Have fun at Alice's!"

That cheeky lil' brat. I shook my head and smiled to myself. But he was cute, so I'll let it slide, just for today.

I switched gears and pulled out of the driveway, on my way to Alice's place. She didn't live that far from me, but it was still a good mile away. Her large family didn't reside in the city; they preferred the countryside in a quaint cottage on a tall hill surrounded by nature. It was probably better that they did too; the amount of noise they made would disturb the neighbors if they lived in a neighborhood like mine.

As I drove up the long, winding road, I gazed at the scenery flying by. I remember the many adventures we had in these very woods. We would go searching for fairies with Flying Mint Bunny by our side, though I was more interested in finding a troll for some reason. Sometimes Tina would join us, but all she wanted was to play princesses, especially after she found Berwald. The memories of re-enacting Cinderella, with Tina as our heroine, Berwald as Prince Charming, Alice and I as 'evil' stepsisters, never failed to make me smile.

Those were the days when Emil insisted on being my prince to protect me from danger. Before he grew up to be a teenager and found his princess. Before we knew I'd find my own prince one day. And some prince he was.

Finally, I reached the top of the hill to see Alice's home waiting. After parking my car by everyone else's, I walked up to knock on the door. To my surprise, Peter opens it. "Hi, Luna!" he greeted me excitedly. "Is Tina with you?"

I rolled my eyes. "Sorry, kiddo. Tina had other plans today." For some reason, he liked Tina the best of all of us. Maybe because she was nice to him and treated him like a baby. He used to be scared of Berwald, but now he accepted him as his second father. Why? I had no idea why.

"Aw," he pouted, but I ignored him and stepped inside. "Where's your sister?"

"In the kitchen, trying to make scones. _Again_." He made a face and raced away. I made my way over to the kitchen, where Alice was watching her baking carefully. I was temporarily shocked by her appearance, too used to her punk appearance at school. She looked different at home, wearing her glasses instead of her contacts, her long hair in pigtails, and wore a simple sundress with an apron in place of her black tees and ripped jeans. Her family was a bit old-fashioned and didn't exactly approve of what she wore to go out, but as long as she dressed to their standards at home, they didn't care.

Alice finally noticed my presence and turned around. "Oh, hello, Luna. Good timing, my scones should be about ready. Would you like one?"

"Um . . ." I hesitated. Her cooking was unpredictable. It would look decent, but taste like a disaster. Even though she usually preferred to make scones, they were usually burnt, overly salted or both. The only person other than herself who could survive her food was her soulmate. But then again, I think he could eat anything made by Alice. Every once in a blue moon though, it was actually edible, but I didn't feel like taking that risk today. "I already ate before I came here . . ."

"That's fine." She shrugged. "Just wait a moment so I can take them out."

As she did so, I headed to her room. Walking inside, I saw that it hadn't changed that much over the years. The forest green walls were covered with posters of bands and movies except for one, being a built in floor to ceiling bookshelf, stuffed full of the books she loved so much. The new books that were waiting to be shelved and organized lay in stacks on the floor.

I noticed a few comic books among the mix as well. Alfred certainly was trying his best to convert her into a whole new realm of stories. So far, the only superheroes Alice liked were Sherlock and Batman since they were smart humans. She had yet to realize the wonders of Superman or Captain America.

Flopping on her neatly made bed, I picked up her beloved stuffed animal. "Hello there, Flying Mint Bunny," I greeted her. The plushie had aged rather gracefully throughout the years. Alice's mother had made the gift for her birthday. Her fur was still soft and a bit fuzzy, the mint color fading a bit and the wings flopping over.

Alice finally walks in with a plate of freshly baked scones and offers me one. I took one look and shook my head politely. "Suit yourself." She shrugs, popping one into her mouth and sets the plate down on her desk. Taking a seat on the swivel chair next to the desk, she turns on her laptop before facing me.

"So, tell me what you know about soulmates."

I rolled my eyes. "I know as much as you do: Everyone is born with a soulmate, someone they're meant to be with. The perfect half of their existence. In order to find your soulmate, you must look into their eyes, and only then will your eye color change, signaling you have found your soulmate. Some side-effects include memories of the past and bursts of happy emotions, aka your happy-ever-after.

"The only exceptions being those born with black eyes, the Soulless. Supposedly they did something terrible in their last life, so they are born without a soul, doomed to wander the Earth forever alone. You can become a Soulless if your other half dies before you meet, like in an accident for example."

Before I met Matthias, I used to believe that I was a Soulless, since I had really dark gray eyes. Waiting this long didn't help either.

"However, the time it takes to meet varies among soulmates. Some are born at the same time, or nearby locations, or on opposite ends of the Earth, always with gray eyes. You can be lucky enough to find your other half in your childhood or spend your whole life searching," I dully finished reciting what we've been told in school.

"Well said," Alice smirked, leaning back in her chair, "But did you know there's more?"

"Oh, joy," I deadpanned. "Please, do tell this inexperienced one all the glorious details."

"Sure." She began to count off her fingers. "You can sense each other's emotions, location—"

"Like a human GPS?" I interrupted her tonelessly. Now it was her turn to roll her eyes. "Yes, exactly. It comes in handy at comic conventions, believe it or not."

"Great." I started to examine my own nails. Should I stop using my usual black polish or not? "What else is there?"

"Hmm." Alice turned back to her screen and typed for a few minutes. I absentmindedly started to move Flying Mint Bunny in the air like a bird. After a while, she spoke up. "Do you feel anything unusual when you're around him? Warm and comforted when he's nearby, small and insecure when you're not together?"

" . . . Yes," I admit reluctantly. I had felt both through out the school day. Not really sure if they're _good_ feelings though.

"Well, that's good news. Proof that he is your soulmate." Alice closed her eyes in thought. "What about dreams?" She asked out of the blue.

" . . . Dreams?" I repeated blankly.

"Yes. You know, when you sleep and—oh wait," she paused. "It might be too early for you two."

"What's so special about dreams?" I asked her out of curiosity. Nobody told me about this before.

Alice smirked at me again. "Well, dreams are a special form of communication between soulmates. You can send messages to each other . . . "

•~•

 _Reflections on a two-way mirror_

 _Of everyone and everything_

 _That's coming in, and coming out_

 _Of our lives._

 _I can see myself in the static,_

 _I can see myself in you._

 _Reflections on a two-way mirror_

 _Time's running out, time's running out . . ._

* * *

That night, Matthias had a strange dream . . .

* * *

A/N: Once again, a continuation of the song used in the last chapter, since this is the second half. A really poor attempt at a song-ish fic, but I like it. Really tempted to use 'Still Here' by Digital Daggers, but I felt this fit better. (Small hint of what's to come if you listen to it!) I might use it in the next chapter or another song . . . we'll see~! What do you think though?


	4. Dream Meeting

Meet Me In My Dreams, After Romeo

 _Won't you come and meet me,_

 _Meet me when I'm dreaming._

 _Let me know, let me know_

 _Can you make it?_

•~•

 **Matthias**

That night, I had a really weird dream. For some reason, I was in a huge white space. It was full of nothingness and smoke. I couldn't see that well, and as far as I could tell, I was alone. Actually, it was kinda creepy. "Hello?" I called out, trying to wave some of the smoke away from my face.

 _Hello? Hello? Hellooo?_

My voice echoed and bounced all around me. I listened carefully for anything. Was there really nobody and nothing here?

 _Hic . . . hic . . . h-hic . . ._

I thought I heard something. It was really soft, but it sounded like . . . crying? It wasn't me. Was there somebody here?

I turned around, trying to pinpoint where exactly were the sounds coming from. Eventually, after taking a few steps forward, I spotted a tiny dot in the distance. Was that where the crying was coming from? Well, it couldn't hurt to go check it out, since I had nothing else to do here. I started walking to whatever waited for me.

As I got closer, I started feeling weird. My emotions were changing; I felt anxious and confused. That was understandable, since I didn't know what I was doing here, but shouldn't I feel more, um, excited and adventurous? I thought I heard some faint music though . . .

 _"How can you see into my eyes like open doors?_  
 _Leading you down, into my core_  
 _Where I've become so numb, without a soul._  
 _My spirit's sleeping somewhere cold_  
 _Until you find it there, and lead it, back,_ _home."_

Finally, the smoke cleared, and I could see that the dot was not a dot; it was a guy curled up hugging his knees on the floor. To be honest, I've never seen him in my life before. He looked like he was younger than me, wearing some kind of sailor suit. His hair was light blond and fell in front of his face. I thought I saw a curl floating by itself. He didn't seem to notice me, shaking and whimpering:

"No . . . no . . . I don't want to be alone!"

I had the weird feeling that I should help him out somehow; his crying made me feel guilty for some reason. Even though I didn't even know him, I followed my instincts and sat down beside him. "Hey," I began, placing my hand on his shoulder, "Are you okay?" He was cold to the touch . . .

He froze, either from the sound of my voice, or at the sudden contact. I quickly pulled back. "I'm not going to hurt you," I told him as reassuringly as I could.

Slowly, he lifted his head up to look at me right in the eyes. This time, it was my turn to freeze. His face was a blur, but what held me in place was his colored orbs. They sharpened into focus, and I couldn't help but stop and stare at them. They were a deep, dark blue, almost purple color. Like a night sky, mysterious and full of secrets. They were blank though, empty of any stars.

His eyelashes were surprisingly long, framing those unusual colored eyes. Tears pooled at the corners, and judging from the red-rimmed eyes, it seemed like he had been crying for a while now. I felt like I'd know those eyes anywhere. Why did they look so familiar?

" . . .-ve me . . ."

"What?" I asked, moving closer so I could hear him. "Sorry, I didn't catch that-"

"Save me," he repeated, staring at my face intently. It felt like I was suffocating, but I could still breathe. I couldn't do anything but look at his eyes. Those eyes. What was up with his eyes? Was that really a natural eye color? His words, softly spoken, grew louder and surrounded us.

 _Save me . . . save me . . . . save me, save me-_

"CALL MY NAME AND SAVE ME FROM THE DARK!"

My eyes flew open to the sound of my alarm going off. For a few minutes, I did nothing but stare at the ceiling, listening to the music, shocked by my dream. The alarm blared:

 _"Wake me up,_

 _Bid my blood to run!_

 _I can't wake up,_

 _Before I come undone!_

 _Save me―_

 _Save me from the nothing I've become!"_

Finally, I reached over to silence it. That was probably the weirdest wake-up call I've ever gotten from my alarm, the music selected at random on shuffle. I should pick something more normal. Maybe something classy.

As I got up to head to the restroom, I thought about my dream. About that boy. About those _eyes_.

What was that?

•~•

 _The clock is ticking slowly,_

 _I'm sick of being lonely._

 _Tonight, baby when you close your eyes . . ._

•~•

 **Luna**

Emil insisted on practicing my lines in the morning as well, even though I was pretty sure I wouldn't be called out today. I didn't feel up to it after my first dream meeting. I was horrified by what happened and wanted to talk to Alice, but I had to get rid of my brother first. We were still in my car, going through what I hoped was the last rehearsal.

"Go."

Grabbing his backpack, he straightens up and clears his throat. "My stuff is ready. Farewell, big sister, and don't forget to write. I'll be expecting many letters."

I can't help but smirk at his formal tone. "Do you doubt _that?"_

He ignores my sarcasm and replies, "For Hamlet, this is temporary. What you have is like a violet in early bloom; it's not going to last long."

"No more but so?" I ask, impressed by how serious he is taking this.

He continues, "Think it no more! For nature, crescent, the virtue of his will; but you must fear-"

"Okay, okay, that's enough!" I interrupted him with a laugh. "Seriously, you don't have to go through the whole thing-"

"Fear it, Ophelia." Emil forges on, "Fear it, my dear sister, and keep you in the rear of your affection-"

"Yes, yes, I know! That's good. You can stop now," I said mock sternly.

He rolls his eyes. "Oh, fear me not," my brother jabs before offering, "If you want, I can do Polonius too."

"No, really, it's fine." I insist, sighing. Hopefully there was still some time for me to find Alice . . .

"Okay." We see his friends at last, so he opens the door. "Farewell, Ophelia, and remember what I've told you."

I roll my eyes, even though he couldn't see behind my sunglasses, and answer, "'Tis in my memory locked, and you yourself shall keep the keys of it."

"At least you know your lines," Emil remarked, shutting the door with a "Farewell!"

"Love you too, lil' bror," I told him before we parted ways. Now, how was I going to find Alice? I sent her a text, but it turned out that I didn't have to go far. She was already waiting for me at my locker.

•~•

 _Now that I know what I'm without,_  
 _You can't just leave me._  
 _Breathe into me and make me real,_  
 _Bring me to life._

•~•

"So, how'd it go last night?" she asked as soon as I arrived, leaning against the lockers.

I cringed as I opened my locker. "Not too well, I'm afraid."

"Huh?" Alice frowned at my negative response. "What happened?"

"Well," I began slowly, "Last night, I dreamed that I was alone. I couldn't see anything but darkness. At first everything was quiet, but then suddenly there were whispers. Voices of despair and malice. They taunted me, laughing about my problem. About how I would be alone for life. It was painful.

"I tried not to listen to them, covering my ears and raising my voice to drown them out, but they wouldn't leave me alone. I didn't know what to do," I shuddered, half-lost in the horrible memory of it.

"And then?" she prompted me patiently. I looked at her, startled; I almost forgot she was here. Alice nods at me in encouragement.

" _And then_ ," I continued with a small smile, "I heard his voice. When I opened my eyes, he was there, right in front of me. Warm and bright, burning away the darkness. He seemed concerned, but he didn't look like he recognized me . . ."

"So then?"

I grimace. "Then I think I scared him off, because when I told him to 'save me', his eyes widened and he disappeared. I woke up after that."

Alice looks thoughtful. I raised an eyebrow at her. "So, what do you think?"

"Hmm," the Brit ponders out-loud, "Well, it seems like your soul was distressed by the lack of attention from your other half, so you ended up reaching out to his soul in a dream." She gives me a cross look. "This wouldn't have happened if only you claimed him _earlier_ -"

"I know, _I know_ ," I groaned, covering my ears. "Please, don't remind me of my stupidest mistake of all my lives."

"Not just your lives. Probably of all past lives in _history_ ," Alice chuckled, slinging a comforting arm around my shoulders. "Hey, now. I'm sure you've done worse in your past. Besides, you can slowly befriend him in your dreams this way, and eventually, convince him you're his other half!"

"Yeah, right," I laughed dryly back at her. "That is, if he doesn't think I'm crazy . . ."

"No, he won't," Alice rolled her emerald eyes at my doubt. "But that's enough about your Lunatics; we've got to do something about your eyes."

"My eyes?" Instinctively, my hands went up to my face. Nope, my sunglasses were still there. "What's wrong with them?"

"Well, for one thing, you can't wear those sunglasses forever," she pointed out. "Everyone knows you're not blind; I doubt that Matthias thinks that either."

"So?" It was childish of me, I know, but I depended on my sunglasses to protect my identity. They wouldn't give me away.

" _So_ , one of these days, a teacher is bound to ask you to take them off. Once everyone sees your eyes, what do you think they're going to do?"

"Oh." I breathed, finally seeing where she was getting at. Everyone would want to know who my soulmate is. I could tell them lies, but they would find out the truth one day. I wasn't ready for that to happen. But . . . "What should I do then?"

Alice smirks at my helplessness as she rummages around in her bag. "Don't worry, I've got you covered." She pulls out a small package and hands it to me. I examine it carefully. " . . . You got me contacts?"

"I thought you might need them," she shrugged as she holds out a bottle of eye drops.

"Thanks." I gave her a quick hug before opening the box. I should have thought of this myself. Why can't I think straight when it comes to my soulmate?

It pained me to cover up my eye color. But I had to; it would stand out compared to everyone else.

After putting them on carefully, I turned to Alice. "How do I look?"

"The way you used to before you met Matthias," she responds impatiently. "Now, will you get a move on already? The bell's about to ring!"

I smirked back at her as I slipped on my shades. "I'm still going to wear these just in case."

Luckily, no one asks for the most part of the day.

•~•

 _Frozen inside, without your touch_  
 _Without your love, darling_  
 _Only you are my life_  
 _Among the dead._

•~•

When lunch comes around, Alice, Tina, and Lovina pick a table as far from Bella's smug looks as possible. I'm so lucky to have them as my friends. Emil doesn't sit with us since he's 'too cool' with his friends at another part of the cafeteria. I made sure to wave at him.

Unsurprisingly, their soulmates follow after us with their food. Well, not really, seeing as we all had English next. When they took their respective seats by their other halves, an unexpected voice goes, "Hey, do you guys have room for one more?"

Guess who it was. No, wait, you don't even have to.

"Oh, hei Matthias!" Tina exclaimed, waving him over. "Sure, just sit by―"

"Why don't you go sit with your _soulmate?"_ I said without thinking, managing to surprise everyone with the amount of venom in my voice, myself included.

The silence that followed was awkward, but eventually he answered, "Well, Bella is in a meeting with her cheer-squad, and I'd feel awkward sitting over there without you guys." He looks embarrassed as he admits that. I'd feel bad for him, but I felt like what I said was justified. Lovina's glaring at him too.

"Luna, don't be so rude!" My cousin scolds me.

"Yeah, Luna," Alice smirked at me, "Let the poor guy have a seat."

Ugh. Traitors, both of them. But majority ruled, seeing as Alfred, Berwald, and Antonio didn't seem to mind, so I removed my bag from the remaining chair and set it on the floor. "Thanks, Luna!" Matthias beams at me. I felt something in my stomach flutter, but I turn away to my salad, stabbing it angrily. Hopefully, I'd be able to ignore him . . .

It was impossible. With him sitting so close to me, my skin tingled with want to touch him. But there was no way for me to do so. Not like the couples with us. Antonio was showing off the tomatoes he'd grown at home, Tina was cooing over Berwald's latest project, and Alice was feeding Alfred homemade scones. Conversation was inevitable.

"So, uh, how was your day?" he blurts out.

"Okay." I deadpanned.

"Really? That's, um, good. . . um . . ." I watched him flounder around in silent amusement. His thinking expression was cute, all scrunched up. Then his eyes lit up.

"How far are you in _Hamlet_?"

"Far enough for me to memorize Ophelia's lines," I said nonchalantly. "You?"

"I'm almost done with Act I!" he stated proudly. I raised an eyebrow at that; I didn't expect that he'd be a fast reader. Probably speed reading or something.

"Wait . . ." Matthias frowns. "What do you mean by 'memorize'?"

"I mean that after lunch, we're going to the gymnasium to practice our lines out-loud," I told him, enjoying the look of horror that was starting to dawn on his face. "Mrs. Elizabeta always has us reenact Shakespeare's stuff for us to fully understand and appreciate the work."

He reached for his backpack to pull the book out and flipped through the pages frantically. "But Hamlet has so many lines!" he groaned. "How am I supposed to memorize them all?"

"You don't have to memorize everything line for line," I tried to reassure him. That look on his face was _gold_. "We're allowed to paraphrase, shorten, and simplify the words. Besides, we're probably not going to finish all of Act I today. You still have time."

He looked worried though, so I sighed and leaned over. "Hey, Alfred! Looks like someone didn't learn their lines last night. Mind helping him out?"

"Sure! A hero always helps out others!" he grinned. We swapped seats so they could practice together. Matthias gave me a grateful look, but I turned away and talked to Alice instead.

•~•

I've been sleeping a thousand years it seems,  
Got to open my eyes to everything.  
Don't let me die here  
Bring, me, to, life.

•~•

After we finished eating, we headed to the gym. It was multi-functional, able to hold many school fairs and events, with a huge stage. Mrs. E had gotten special permission to use the area for our practices. Everyone settled on the benches in front as we waited to be called up. She clapped her hands for attention.

"Alright, everyone, today we are starting Act I, Scene I. I want Alfred, Berwald, Heracles, Toris, and Vash up here!"

As we watched Heracles struggle to say his lines through yawns, I turn back to Alice. "So, how'd you get Alfred to play Horatio again?

"He wanted a heroic role, so I recommended Horatio," she replied. "He's a close friend of Hamlet and he has an important role at the end."

"Sure . . . but there's got to be more to it than that," I said doubtfully. She shrugs and turns back to the stage as Alfred steps on the stage. "The hero is here!"

"So, what's he doing here again?" Toris asks curiously.

"He doesn't believe our story," Vash answers, "So I brought him here to prove that the ghost is real!"

"W-what?" Alfred laughs nervously, "What a-are you guys t-talking about? There's n-no such t-things as g-ghosts!"

"Yes, there is!" Toris insists. "Come, have a seat, and we'll tell you what we have seen these past two nights."

"Fine, tell me your story." Alfred plops on the ground, ready to listen.

"Last night, when the North Star has traveled where it is now, around one o'clock, Marcellus and I—" he breaks off as Berwald enters the stage. He's always been scary to people, but for some reason, he's wearing a white sheet with eyeholes. . .

Alfred lets out a shriek of terror and scoots away. I look back at Alice in amusement. "Ghosts. Really?"

"Yes." She doesn't even bother to hide her smirk. I heave a sigh. "I don't suppose you're also the one who gave that sheet to Berwald when he doesn't really need one?"

"Guilty as charged."

I shake my head in amazement. "At least his fear is authentic . . ."

We spend the last moments of the scene giggling at Alfred's sad attempts to talk to Berwald. When Scene II begins, I partially listen to Ivan's speech as I read over my lines silently for the next scene. But when Matthias says his first line, "A little more than kin and less than kind," I jerk my head back up to watch.

"How is it that the clouds still hang upon you?" Ivan continues as if he didn't hear Matthias speak.

"Not so, my Lord! I'm too much in the sun!" My soulmate replies brightly. I wince at his cheerfulness. He really needs to tone that down; Hamlet's supposed to be a mourning son in depression. Watching him talk, he doesn't seem to be any different than usual. Did the dream last night not affect him at all?

Nonetheless, I kept my eyes on him, safe to stare as much as I wanted with the protection of my shades.

When the 'royalty' finally exits the stage and Matthias delivered a shortened version of Hamlet's soliloquies, Alfred hops back on the stage with Vash and Toris. "Hey there, Hamlet!" he shouts across the platform.

My soulmate blinks in surprise, looking out of breath from his hurried speech. "Ah, I'm glad to see you well, Horatio." he greets the bespectacled blond with some difficulty. "What brings you here from Wittenberg?"

Alfred coughs awkwardly. "I came here to see your father's funeral."

"Are you sure?" Matthias asks dryly. "You're not here for my mother's marriage?"

"Uh, no. I didn't expect that to happen."

"Me neither," he lets out a sigh, seeming to be dazed and distracted. "They probably wanted to save money by having both events at the same time. I miss my Dad."

"My Lord, I think I saw him last night."

"Saw who?" The Dane questions absentmindedly.

"My Lord, the king. Your father."

Matthias turns to him in faux astonishment. I had to give him credit; he looked pretty surprised to me. "The king . . . my father?!" he repeats in 'shock'.

"Yup!" Alfred nods. "I saw him with these guys last night!"

"Where did you see him?" he demanded eagerly.

"On the castle wall where we keep watch," Vash spoke up.

"What did he look like?"

"Uhhh . . ." Alfred cringed as he recalled the 'ghost'. " . . . Well, we were able to recognize him because his helmet was up, he looked very sad and . . . pale."

"Alright then!" Matthias cheered up. "Tonight, I'll join you guys. Say, around 11 or 12, okay?"

"Our duty to your honor." They bow and leave the stage. "Your loves, as mine to you. Farewell." My soulmate turns back to the audience, pacing and frowning as if he's deep in thought. "My father's spirit―showing up now? Something's going on . . . I'm thinking foul-play. If only it was night already!"

With that, he walks off the platform. Everyone claps and cheers for the ending of Scene II. "Well, he's actually pretty good," Alice admits reluctantly.

I shrugged. "At least he's better than Alfred," I respond coolly, with a smallest hint of pride in my voice. Our English teacher clapped her hands again. "Well done, everyone! I'm sure we still have time for one more scene. Laertes, Ophelia and Polonius, come on out!"

Putting my book down with a sigh, I got up. "There's my cue."

"Break a leg!" Alice called after me as I made my way toward the stage.

•~•

 _And now I'm sending you a message_

 _I hope you're not against it_

 _Tonight, when you close your eyes_

•~•

Whew. Thank God that was over. I wasn't sure how much longer I was going to last. Why did Shakespeare give Hamlet too many lines?

All the credit went to Luna though. If she hadn't called Alfred to practice with me, I definitely would've looked like an idiot up there, unprepared and all. I couldn't have that; I did ask for the main role. I had something to prove to everyone!

Tina's cousin is a funny girl. One minute she wouldn't even look at me, the next she was helping me out! I don't really get her, but she's cool I guess.

"Oh, Luna~" Mrs. Elizabeta called out sweetly.

She looks at our teacher, her face free of any emotions. "Yes?" Even her voice is empty.

"As fabulous as you look with your sunglasses, do you mind taking them off? I'm pretty sure that they didn't exist back in Shakespeare's time."

"Fine," Luna agreed monotonously. She reached up to pull them off. I watched her carefully. I had always wondered why she wore them to begin with. Did she have some kind of special eye condition? Was she ashamed of her eye-color?

Her shades were off, but her eyes were closed.

Or maybe she was―

Her eyelids snapped open, revealing a dark gray eye color.

Oh . . .

For some reason, I felt disappointment crash into me when I saw her eyes. But then again, was I expecting something else? I really shouldn't let my imagination get the best of me, but still . . .

Something about those gray eyes bugged me.

Shaking my head, I dejectedly followed Alfred up the bleachers where Alice was waiting and sat down, pulling open the book. As I scanned through my next scene, I overheard their conversation.

"So, how'd I do?" he asked his soulmate excitedly.

"You did wonderfully, my little Mcnugget!" she gushed back fondly.

I scooted away from their lovey-doveyness. You'd think I'd be used to seeing that by now, with Berwald and Tina like that all the time, but I thought they could use their space. It made me a little jealous; I wasn't like that with my soulmate. Hell, I didn't even _feel_ like doing that with Bella. But maybe things like that would come later?

Turning back to the stage, I tune in just in time to hear Francis say, "Be wary, then. Best safety lies in fear. Youth to itself rebels, though none else near."

"I shall the effect of this good lesson keep as watchman to my heart," Luna deadpanned, "But, good my brother, do not, as some hypocritical pastors do, show me the steep and thorny way to heaven, while walking the primrose path of dalliance, ignoring his own advice."

This statement made most of the class laugh. According to Alfred, when he introduced me to everyone, Francis used to be a hot-shot player before he met his soulmate. Apparently, Alice had some bad blood with him in the past.

"O, fear me not," he protests, but there's a knowing smile on his face.

Then Lars steps on the stage to lecture his 'son' on how to behave in France. **(lol)** When Francis finally runs away to his boat, he then turns to Luna to tell her off as well. "What is it, Ophelia, he hath said to you?"

She rolls her gray eyes at him. I feel another twinge of weird. "So please you, something touching about Lord Hamlet."

"Aha!" He exclaimed."I've seen you two spending time together recently. Tell me, what is going on between you two?"

I stifled a laugh. In reality, there was nothing between us. She barely responded to my ice-breakers and all, and I kept on trying―for what? I didn't know. It was fun, though, trying to get a reaction out of her.

Luna looked vaguely amused by this, saying dryly, "He hath, my Lord, of late made many tenders of his affection for me."

"Affection? Pfft!" Lars retorted disbelievingly. "You speak like a schoolgirl. Do you believe his 'tenders', as you call them?"

"I do not know, my Lord, _what I should believe_." Her heavy sarcasm is more obvious this time, causing more laughter from everyone.

"Mary, I will teach you!" he grouches, and proceeds to instruct her on how to act around me―er _Hamlet_.

The scene ends with Luna's flat "I shall obey, my Lord." Mrs. Elizabeta claps her hands enthusiastically, the class following suit. "Excellent job, you three!" She glances over at the clock. "That'll be all for today. Have a great day everyone!"

Luna walks up the steps to grab her stuff. "Luna, you were amazing up there!" Tina squealed excitedly. Alice nods in agreement. "I loved your take on Ophelia's words."

"Thanks." She nods at them, returning back to her usual calm. "Don't forget that we have a _mandatory_ practice later today."

"We'll be there!" They chime at the same time as the bell rings. She raises an eyebrow as in ' _you better be there'_ before slinging her bag over her shoulder and leaving the room. That strange feeling to follow her comes back and I give in, rushing out the door and calling out, "Hey Luna!"

She stops in her tracks this time and turns around, giving me enough time to catch up. Her gray eyes threw me off, and I almost collided with someone on the way. "What?" It isn't a question, more like a statement of annoyance.

Still, I ignore her sudden unfriendliness and go, "Great job up there!"

" . . . Thanks," she mutters under her breath, resuming the walk to World History. I keep up with her since I have that class too. The silence bugs me though, because there aren't that many people around on this route, so I try again. "So, mind sharing your secrets to pulling off a performance like yours?"

"Practice." Well, that's true. I laugh awkwardly, not missing that subtle jab. "Oh, right! Thanks for getting Alfred to help me."

"You're welcome." Luna suddenly ducks her head slightly. I tilt my head to get a better look at her face. I wasn't sure, but for a second there I thought I saw the corners of her mouth curve up into a smile. But it was gone in a blink of an eye.

So she does have feelings. It's good to know that she's not a heartless robot. I feel like saying something, but the silence is comfortable now. I don't want to mess it up.

I settle for a quiet chuckle.

•~•

 _Just tell me that you'll be there_

 _Tell me that you'll be there, be there_

 _Promise that you'll be there_

 _Be there . . ._

•~•

At practice, I find Berwald and Tina saying their goodbyes. "I'll see you in a few hours, Ber-ber!" She tries to console him, his face still in stoicism. I try my best not to throw cheese at the scene. Soulmates and their dramatics, I swear.

When they finally separate, Tina blows a kiss as she walks away. "Hey, where's she going?" I ask him curiously. I was used to Tina hanging out on the benches with Alice. Wait a minute. Looking around, I don't see Alfred's green-eyed soulmate anywhere.

"Tina has to practice with Alice and Luna before their gig today," Berwald replies in his deep rumbling voice, pointing to the building where Luna ran into me before.

"Really?" That was interesting. Berwald notices my excitement and raises an eyebrow. "Want to come and watch after school?"

* * *

A/N: And there we have it, the first dream. It's pretty bad, I know . . . *Cringe* But, things will get interesting from here~ If you get the references that I hid between the lines, namely which Dennor fic did I get the line "Save me" I'll give you a wuggle (heart)

I've been thinking, after I read some fics about the parallel nations and alternate universes, that the past lives will be from . . .

Fanfictions that you guys wrote!

What do you think?


	5. Strange Feelings

Tightrope, Tiffany Alvord

 _We know, we can't fight it,_

 _We're a mess, but we like it._

 _And I won't let it go,_

 _Lovin' you is like walking on a tightrope._

 **Matthias**

Heh, my brother knew me so well! Hell ya, I wanted to go! The curiosity from whatever the girls were up to was killing me! So right after our drills of the day, Berwald drove Alfred, Gilbert, Antonio and me to where they were performing. I stared outside at the buildings in amazement. This was some high-end street! Everything was bright and flashy at this late time from the lights along the streets. People were walking around, either shopping or looking in windows.

"Matthias, over here!"

I turn to see Gilbert waving at me and the rest of the guys standing by the entrance of a flashing, fancy looking club. That's where they were performing? Sweet! As I made my way over to them, I noticed a long line waiting in the front. It was really long, wrapping all around the block. I started to get a little nervous from all the stares as I reached the area. The red-head bouncer standing outside the entrance watched me suspiciously. "Guys, who's this?"

"Hey, I'm Matthias, Berwald's brother," I told him with a grin as I wrapped an arm around the Swede's shoulders. His glare intimidated me a bit, just a bit. Were we really in the right place? He gave an unimpressed snort and glanced over to Alfred. What, he didn't see our family resemblance at all?! Luckily my bespectacled buddy backed me like a true pal he is. "Yeah, well soon to be step-brother. He's new to the area, so it'd be cool if he came with us, right?"

The way he stared Alfred down worried me for a few seconds, but then he suddenly guffawed and reached out, unclipping the rope chain. "Man, if you weren't with Alice, I'd definitely wouldn't be doing this."

"Thanks bro!" Alfred bumped fists with him as he walked inside, everyone else following right behind. As I walked through the door, the red-head scanned me one last time before turning back to the crowd. "But if he gets into any trouble, it's on you," were his parting words as he shut the door behind us.

"Don't worry, I won't," I told them, half meaning it. I couldn't make any promises right now, could I?

"Sure, sure!" he agreed quickly and ushered us in. "Alright guys, my shift's gonna start soon, so sit somewhere and make yourselves comfortable before the show starts!" Alfred hurried over to a door and disappeared. I turned to Berwald for answers. "So, who was that guy at the entrance, and how does Alfred know him?"

"He's Alice's older brother, Alistair," answered the Swede, "Alfred works with him here along with Alice's other brother, Dylan."

He nodded at a dude wiping the counter-top. I watched him for a few seconds before turning away to look at everything in awe. I've never been inside a club like this before. "Whoa," I breathed, taking everything in. The place was brightly lit inside, with plush seating scattered all over. There was a stage at one end of the room with a couple singing. On the opposite end was a bar with many different types of alcohol on display with miniature spotlights. It looked too expensive to be here. "Are you sure we're allowed to be in here?"

"We're here for the music, not the drinks," he pointed out. "Should be fine."

"Yeah, but," I glanced at Gilbert, who was already sitting at the counter with a beer, "Why is he drinking?"

Berwald rolled his eyes. "Because he's an idiot."

"So then . . ." I trailed off suggestively, wiggling my eyebrows.

"No," was his immediate answer. I used my best sad look on him, but he only glared at me. Even though I was technically the oldest, by one day (haha), he decided to be the mature and responsible sibling. That was fine by me, but this included being a downer when I wanted to have fun, making sure I stayed out of trouble, and wouldn't hesitate to rat me out.

"Alright, fine," I huffed, looking away and giving up. Even though I wasn't planning on driving back, he only saw me drunk once, and decided he couldn't or didn't want to deal with that again. We decide to sit at a mostly empty group of tables near the back, with the exception of one guy in red, since the people here hogged all the tables near the stage. Berwald left to order water while Antonio was busy cooing at his phone. This left me with only my thoughts for company. As we waited for the show to start, I went back to the conversation that we had on the way here.

•~•

"So, what kind of gig do the girls have?" I asked them curiously, casually.

"Well, they're gonna perform at the club where Alice and me work at," Alfred answered me. "It's kinda normal for them by now, a couple times a week, every Friday."

"Really? That sounds awesome!"

"Yeah, but it's just a side thing for them. Like extracurriculars for college applications, you know?"

"Not for Luna," Gilbert cackled. "She's pretty hardcore, practicing every single day. Though, not as bad as our Mozart wannabe teacher!"

"Every day?" I echo in amazement. So that's why she didn't want to watch us yesterday.

"Mhm," Berwald confirmed, never taking his eyes off the road. "Plans to major in music."

Wow. She's only a sophomore, and she already has her life planned out. Compare that to me, I don't even know what I want in life yet. She really is _—_

I was pulled out of my thoughts when I heard a high-pitched squeal. Looking up, I saw a blurred figure wearing dark clothing tackle-hug Berwald. It wasn't enough to knock him over, but he did lose his breath from the collision.

"Ber-bear, you're here~!" Tina beamed up happily at him. The Swede reached down to stroke her hair with a slight smile. "Of course. Wouldn't miss it for the world."

I silently gagged to myself. Twice in a day was my limit, I think. While they were still in their soulmate bubble, I noticed Tina's clothes again and did a double-take. They were different from she wore at school. Her shirt was a dark navy blue with holes all over the sleeves, a black skirt with real metal chains hanging on, and her look was completed with a black flower in her hair and a silver cross necklace. She looked like a younger version of Luna, make-up and all. What happened to her?

Wrapped securely in Berwald's arms, she turned and finally noticed me. "Oh, hej Matthias! You came too?"

"Yep!" I grinned at her. "Since Berwald here was talking about how good you guys were, I decided to tag along to see for myself. Hope you don't mind."

"Oh, no it's fine! I'm glad you're here!" she reassured me. "I just came out here for some help." Tina tilted her head back to look up at her soulmate. "Berwald, can you help me move the equipment to the stage?" she asked with big, round puppy eyes. As you could probably tell, Berwald didn't stand a chance against those eyes. He nodded and started to get up. Dang, I gotta ask her how does she pull that off.

"If you want, I can help too," I offered. It was getting kinda boring, sitting down and watching everyone in the bar. My body was itching for some exercise.

"No, that's okay," Tina said. "There's not that much, but Alice and Luna might get mad if you mess with their stuff. And Berwald's really strong~" She glanced at her soulmate with another adoring smile before continuing, "Besides, it's your first time here! You should just relax and enjoy the performances!"

And with that, they left me. I was still bored, so I looked around some more. On the stage, the couple singing the duet finished and walked off the stage. One of Alice's brothers, I forgot his name already, stepped into the spotlight and spoke into the microphone.

"Alright guys, in a few minutes Siren's Voice will be up," he announced, "So be nice and patient, yeah?"

"Siren's Voice?" I repeated to myself. I've never heard that song before, but judging from the crowd's wild response, they knew it well.

"You've never heard of them?" A shocked voice echoed my thoughts. I looked up to see the guy sitting at the table next to mine, staring back at me curiously. He looked like your typical cosplayer, with a small dark red bowler hat, weird burgundy eyes, an effect from wearing red contacts I think because there was no way that was his natural eye-color, and matching coat. A pair of fake fangs hanging out his mouth completed the look.

. . . was he supposed to be a vampire?

"Um, yeah," I said sheepishly, scratching my head, "I'm kinda new here, so _—_ "

"Oh really? I thought so!" The stranger laughed widely, the colored lights bouncing off his 'teeth'. I mean, he sorta looked like a vampire, except that his strawberry blond hair didn't really fit in. Maybe if he dyed his hair black? Unless he was going for the whole _Twilight_ look and messed up his hair dye... But I really shouldn't judge.

Looking closer though, I thought I saw something glitter on his skin _—_

"Anyways!" He continued, interrupting my thoughts again, "Siren's Voice is one of the most popular groups around here. Made of three members, all girls, one being the club's owner's younger sister, which makes her untouchable, and her friends. She and one of them found their soulmates already, so they're off-limits. The third member, who is still single, is none other than _—_ "

"Luna Bondevick!" Another voice burst out loudly behind us over the music. We turned to see Gilbert, grinning and on his way to being drunk out of his mind, making his way towards us. He plopped down on Berwald's empty chair and placed his half-empty beer bottle on the table.

"That's right," the 'vampire' agreed, "But she's no easy catch. Luna's really picky about her men, doesn't date often, our renowned ice queen. You're better off in your wildest dreams _—_ "

"Nu-uh!" The Prussian butted in again. He hiccuped and wiped his red face before guffawing, "I went out with her before! But man, that girl's seriously frigid though! She just couldn't keep up with my awesomeness!"

"Well, so have I," retaliated the strawberry blond with a sigh. "It's such a shame that she doesn't like me though. Luna's quite a lovely girl..."

"She's just like Lovi!" Antonio chimed in cheerfully, "but Lovi's definitely cute!"

For some reason, the conversation seriously ticked me off. I really didn't like the way they talked about her. Maybe it was because they mentioned her like an object, not a person to care about. She wasn't that heartless! And Lovina probably wasn't the best person to compare her to. I decided to try and defend her honor. "Well, I think Luna _—_ "

"Talking about me, I see." A cool, empty voice slid in smoothly.

We looked up to see Luna herself gazing at us with a cold, disinterested stare. She too was dressed up for the performance, her usual dark clothing adorned with chains of silver jewelry. Her pale blond hair stood out in stark contrast. Most importantly, her shades were off. Looking at her dark eyes, my stomach wiggled. What was up with my lunch today?

She looked absolutely, terrifyingly breathtaking, and our table was silenced right away with her presence.

"Hey Luna," somehow the 'vampire' was able to greet her naturally, "Shouldn't you be in the back getting ready?"

"Just getting a drink, Vlad," she answered, holding up a water-bottle. "We're going to start in a few minutes, so _—_ "

"Luna~" Gilbert slurred, reaching up to wrap his arm around her shoulders, "Can yooou singyy a songyy for meee?" Suddenly, something surges within me, and I felt the urge to punch him. The feeling was much stronger than before. Watching the way he touched her felt _wrong_. Luckily, before I could act on those weird feelings by doing something that I might regret, Luna beats me to the punch by easily shoving him off with a flat, "What kind?"

"Hm..." He didn't deem to be fazed at all by her actions, lazily resting his head on his arm and gazing at her with half-lidded eyes, smirking sloppily. Was he drunk already? Why would he be hitting on her after complaining earlier? This only fueled the strange swirls inside as I watched for her reaction as he asked, "One about your feelings for me~?"

But she only rolled her eyes at his request, saying only, "Sure" and turning away from him in dismissal. The relief I felt when she did was overwhelmingly calming for some reason. I couldn't change my expression fast enough when she happened to look directly at me. "Oh. You're here too," Luna said, though she didn't seem to be that surprised to see me like Tina was. I quickly put a grin on my face.

"Uh, yeah!" I managed to say with those steely eyes on me, "You see, Berwald told me about this and I was curious so I came with and _—_ "

"That's nice," she cut me off, effortlessly saving me from my nervous rambling. Her eyes looked away to sweep around the room, which was almost full by now. All the seats were taken by now, and some people were already standing by the stage. Huh. I didn't notice before, but it seems like Siren's Voice really is popular with this crowd.

"As much as I would love to stay and chat a while longer, I should go now. Everyone has waited long enough. See you guys in a bit."

With that, Luna turned away and swayed over to a door labeled 'Employees only'. I found my voice again and called out without thinking, "Hey Luna!" I didn't think that she'd listen to me, but when she actually stopped before the door to look back surprised me. Since I hadn't planned out what to say, I just told her lamely, "Good luck."

"Thanks," she replied quietly before slipping behind the door. Even though her response was a bit stiff, I could feel a warm glow. Somehow, wishing her luck made her happy. I didn't know how I knew that, since anyone else would think she just brushed off my words, but I knew. It made me grin.

But then some sharp whistling popped my happy bubble. I turned back to see the va- _Vlad_ smirking at me. "And that, my friend, is Luna Bondevick."

"Yeah, I know," I told him absentmindedly, thinking about her cute reaction. "I go to the same school as her. We have a couple of classes together."

"Do you now?" He shook his head in admiration. "Lucky you. Too bad she's out of your league."

"Obviously!" I forced out a laugh, feeling my stomach twist at his words. "Besides, I've already found my soulmate."

•~•

 _Tip-toe, when you chase me,_  
 _Turn around, you can't make me._  
 _And I won't let it go,_  
 _Lovin' you is like walking on a tightrope._

•~•

 **Luna**

I softly shut the door behind me, leaned back against it and let my body slide to the floor with a sigh. Closing my eyes, I curled up, resting my forehead on my knees and clutched my wildly racing heart. It had taken all my concentration to keep my calm and ignore Matthias. Every molecule within me screamed just to look at him, to touch him, _to be with him_ , but by some miracle I managed to resist.

 _Thump, ba-thump, thump,_ went my heart.

Feeling his conflicting emotions didn't help either.

 _Ba-thump, thump,_ _ba-thump!_

It was all Tina's fault. She probably invited him to come and watch, neglecting to tell me beforehand on purpose. Though it was unnecessary, since I could feel his presence as soon as he arrived. Even so, my heart wasn't prepared for another meeting so soon. It refused to stop beating, knowing that he was only a few feet away from the door behind me.

 _Thump, ba-thump, thump, ba-thump, THUMPH!_

I heard footsteps approaching. They stopped in front of me and someone crouched down. I looked up to see Alice looking at me in concern. "Luna, are you alright?"

"Just fine," I told her sourly, easily regaining my composure. Thank God I had Alice to listen to my problems. "It's just that I found out that we have an unexpected guest this evening."

"Really? I wonder who could make you irritable like this. You're usually more prepared for our performances..." She frowned in thought. I opened my mouth to tell her when she easily concluded, "Oh, Matthias is here, isn't he?"

 _Ba-thump, thump,_ _ba-thump!_

"Took the words right out of my mouth," I grumbled, glad that I didn't have to say his name, yet ached at the missed opportunity. My heart fluttered at the sound of it. "You could say that I'm . . . a bit nervous about singing in front of him."

To my surprise, she laughed at my confession. "Oh, is that all? Don't worry too much about it. The words will come out naturally, and even more so when you're singing for him."

 _Thump, ba-thump, thump!_

"You don't say," I stared at her skeptically. "The butterflies within me doubt your words."

"There's no reason for them to!" Alice protested with a smile. "Don't you remember last summer when I sang to Alfred for the first time on his birthday? Sure, I was nervous as heck, but as soon as I looked into his eyes, all my uneasiness fell away and I was able to sing with all my heart and soul."

"Alright then," I muttered, not fully accepting her words. Unlike her, I wouldn't be able to watch my soulmate's reaction during our performance. It'd look weird if I put on my sunglasses now... I'll have to figure something out. But there was another pressing problem that demanded attention.

 _Ba-thump, thump, thump..._

"Also, Gilbert asked me to 'singy a songy' for him too. I have no idea what to pick." I grimaced as an afterthought.

"Ah," Alice's emerald eyes lit up with mischievous delight. "In that case, I have the perfect song for him."

•~•

 _Tightrope, tightrope._

•~•

It's only been a few minutes since Luna left, and I found myself awkwardly making small talk with my table-mates. I was just about to kill myself out of boredom when the mood of the music suddenly changes up from a subtle, pulsing beat to an old-timey sounding tune. The audience begins to cheer as Dylan _—_ _Oh right! That's his name!_ _—_ steps on the stage with a mic.

"Ladies and gentlemen, thanks for your patience. Here's what you've been waiting for, Siren's Voice!"

The lights drop and the music picks up, the curtain rising to reveal Alice and Lovina posed back to back on the stage. As the crowd cheers, they begin to sing:

" _Now's the time, get in line,_  
 _Don't be afraid tonight_  
 _We're gonna take you high,_  
 _Before you realize—_

Luna and Tina stalk in from the sides, continuing the song in synced voices:

 _'Round and 'round you'll go,_  
 _Up and down, never slow..._  
 _Feel the excitement grow, oh!_  
 _This is where you let go—_

They moved in time to the beat, their arms and hands forming quick patterns. I had to admit, it was impressive. It must have taken hours of practice for them to perfect their timing.

 _Hands high like a roller coaster,_  
 _This love is taking over_  
 _Take us higher, here we go!_  
 _Oh-o-oh_

 _Welcome to the show!_ "

Together they bowed to the audience with a flourish, rousing a loud round of applause. Alice held her hand out for Dylan to toss her the microphone. She twirled it in her hand for a few spins before bringing to her face to speak. "Good evening everyone! Glad you could make it. Tonight our first song is dedicated to a very lucky guy out there."

She handed the mic over to Luna, who glowered at her before reluctantly accepting it. She turned back to the crowd, narrowing her dark eyes at our table, stating chillingly, "This is for you, Gilbert. Hopefully, this'll tell you _exactly_ how I feel about you."

From the way she rolled her eyes when the albino jumped up to shout drunkenly, "That's me!" I'm guessing that wasn't the way she wanted to start the night off. Then again, he was only on his fourth or fifth drink. It might have been the trick of the light, but I thought I saw the smallest hint of a smirk on her face when she turns back to her usual calm, the cue for the music to begin as the girls began to hum the chorus.

I could only wonder which song she picked for him.

[The Best Thing (That Never Happened), We Are The In Crowd]

(Ow, ooh~)

" _I let you get away with-_  
 _Thinking you're the cure..._  
 _I think I'm in too deep,_  
 _It's time to pull the cord._

The way Luna began the song was alot like when she delivered her lines in class, carefully measured and in monotone. I glanced over at Gilbert to see his response. He didn't seem to be affected by the words, grinning and nodding to the beat of the music. It didn't sound like a love song to me though...

" _You like me more when you think,_  
 _I'm getting bored..._  
 _I hope you're home the day I-_  
 _Tear down the walls!_

She flashed a quick smirk at our table before jumping into the lyrics with more enthusiasm than I thought she'd have. The group followed her lead seamlessly:

" _I won't settle, settle, settle—!_  
 _You are never gonna hold me down..._  
 _So toxic, you ain't nothin' but a prick!_  
 _I'm the best thing that never happened to you!_

 _Never, never, never,_  
 _You are never gonna live this down!_  
 _Life's too short, I can't fake it anymore._  
 _I'm the best thing that_ never _happened to ya!_

Now a frown was starting to settle on Gilbert's face, his smile faltering. I couldn't blame him, it probably wasn't what he was expecting to begin with. He had it coming for him. Still, the next stanzas had to hurt.

" _Don't you get sick of only_  
 _Hearing your own voice?_  
 _Talk like you're so damn tough,_  
 _But you're just a little boy._

 _You like to think you broke the mold,_  
 _But now I'm sure..._  
 _You'll crack just like the rest when I_  
 _Break your freaking jaw!_

Amusement danced in Luna's dark eyes as she laughed openly into her microphone, chanting, "I won't settle! I won't settle! I won't settle...

" _I won't settle, settle, settle,_  
 _You are never gonna hold me down!_  
 _So toxic, you ain't nothin' but a prick..._  
 _I'm the best thing that never happened to you!_

 _Never, never, never,_  
 _You are never gonna live this down!_  
 _Life's too short, I can't fake it anymore._  
 _I'm the best thing that_ _never happened to ya!"_

 _(Ooh, hahahaha, woah~)_

They finished their song exactly as they did with their first, inviting another round of applause. Gilbert's head was on the table, his face hidden from view. I felt kinda bad for him, being publically rejected like that. Even though he was rude to her, Luna didn't have to be that harsh on him. I decided to try to cheer him up.

"Hey," I began, ready to say anything, but then his shoulders started to shake with weird sounds muffled by his arms. Slowly rising from his slumped pose, he threw his head back and laughed loudly, "Kesesesesesesese! That's so Luna!"

"For sure," Vladimir agreed. "But I'll have better luck next time."

"Um... what?" I ended up asking, looking back and forth between them questioningly.

"Ah, this is just a bet between me and Gilbert," Vlad explained, taking a sip of his suspiciously red drink. "To see who can win over Luna first."

The albino crowed in agreement. "Yeah, and I'm winning!"

"No, you're not. Did you not listen to the song she sang for you _—_ "

"KESESESESES! Admit it, you're just jealous of the AWESOME ME _—_ "

As I watched them argue, I shook my head in amazement at their carelessness. Weren't they worried about their own soulmates at all? To see them fight over a girl-who wasn't even the soulmate of either one?

Or what Luna's soulmate would do about it?

Turning my back on their bickering, I turned back to the stage, where Siren's Voice had already started another song. Even though Luna never looked back at our table for the rest of the performance, I could tell she was feeling smug and confident over her victory.

•~•

 _Shot me like a bee sting,_  
 _You know,_  
 _Poison is my everything,_  
 _And it, doesn't hurt so bad,_  
 _I'm past the point and never turning back..._

* * *

First off, I have good news. I'm ALIVE~! :D

WaityoualreadyknowthatwhatwithhowmuchI'vebeenreadingandreviewinglately... ha.. ha... TwT

Isn't it funny how I have more time to read than write? okaynowthatjustsoundslikeareallybadexcuse xvx

Honestly, I did mean to post this MUCH sooner (seeing as I haven't updated this since... September? Wow, it has been a long wait... sorry (இ﹏இ`｡)/ but it's not exactly my main priority. *awkwardly passes out list full of life's excuses*

Last year was kinda rough. I was struggling with worries, the loss of my rabbit in November (my editor and muse), a bit of writer's block and laziness. Reading helped me forget, even for a short while, brimming with emotions from wonder-filled stories~

But things got better this year. For some reason, I started getting signs to update this story. Notifications from readers despite the time gap. My rabbit returned last month (albeit unwillingly, but returned nontheless~). The ever so friendly death threats from my lovely peer-reviewer cousin who read half of the unedited version of this chapter for Christmas.

(Also I was going through a mild overthinking crisis of whether the characters were OOC or not. [The result of reading too many soulmate stories to compare myself to. But they were so goooooood] As an author, I believe their behaviors are justified, but they might not be... then I went 'eh' and posted without a care, since someone will tell me if they were, right? Right? ;A; )

The final straw was when last week's Spotify's Discover Weekly offered me not one, not two, but THREE different covers of the EXACT SAME SONG. I've posted this story on three different sites, so if that wasn't a sign, then I don't know what is-

(It was The Chainsmoker's Closer. Yes, I am that person who listens to covers despite the fact that THE ORIGINAL IS SO MUCH BETTER. But I digress.)

As for the next chapter, realistically I'm hoping by next month, but I'm not promising anything (no I'm not one of those 'won't make a promise that won't keep'). It's better not to keep your hopes up when I'm terribly lazy at heart and still struggling with some block and would rather read other stories. Though I am planning to post a new story sometime this week..

Still, I kinda wish that this chapter was at least slightly romantic for the holiday. Oh well. [willieveracheiveromanceinthisfic? D:] For now, I'll just throw a recommendation at you for romantic DenNor feels:

 _Crystal Kisses -_ by Coshledak here on FFN~ It's a Cinderella twist, kinda old, but extremely well-written ~ (I got reminded of it from another recent story)

Code: /s/5602807/2/Crystal-Kisses

As for my fellow Asians, Happy New Year! :D

whydidthisturnoutsolongillprobablyendupdeletinghalfofthisanlaterwhenimlesstiredandmorecriticalofmyself... meh


	6. We Meet Again

Hey you! I know, I know, it's been a while again, hasn't it? OmO;; (Almost another 4 months actually... *cringe*) I knew this was gonna take a while, but not THIS LONG! TT n TT But I'm back at it again~ with a more solid-ish plan this time.

And thanks so much for your support! I wasn't able to respond to you guys last time because the message system was wonky or something, but thanks so much! (and sorry, but I can't have Bella hit by a bus. I have plans, much plans ahead, so I'll keep that in mind~ xDDD

Have some Dennor as your treat~!

* * *

Mind Over Matter, PVRIS

 _You were spoiled rotten and turned stale like all your plans_

 _My tongue's acquired tolerance for tastes I couldn't stand_

 _You've been stuck in a rut and a wasteland_

 _Drowned in swamps below your feet..._

 **Matthias**

I don't remember falling asleep last night, only to find myself in that weird white room again. It looked exactly the same as I remembered from last time, only without the cloudiness.

"Hello?" I called out, wondering if this was going to be one of those repeating dreams that I would have every single night, forever haunted by a guy that I felt like I knew but had never seen in my life, sobbing 'save me' and I would end up going crazy until I finally told a trusted person, who would be Berwald, and he would tell me that I was crazy, but then I'd argue that I wasn't—

"Hello."

I might have screamed and jumped a little. That voice scared me from behind though, so I turned around right away. There he was, the boy of my dreams. But not in the way you're thinking. See, he's a guy, right? And he's in my dream, get it? . . . No? . . . Forget it then.

Anyways, this time he wasn't crying. Actually, he looked kinda bored. Lounging on a chair, from who knows where because the room was still empty, I wouldn't think that he was even capable of feeling if I hadn't seen him so emotional before. Those dark empty blue-purple eyes stared. And stared at me. And stared some more. Was he expecting something?

"Um," I tried staring back, "Who are you?"

He blinked slowly and probably raised an eyebrow. "What, you don't recognize me?"

" . . . Not really?" I admitted, squinting my eyes and taking a few steps forward. His eyes I could see clearly in detail, but some of the rest of him like his face or clothes were slightly out of focus. Which was weird because I knew there was nothing wrong with my eyes.

"I mean, I do remember you from my dream last time—" I let out an awkward chuckle because what if he really had been in that dream, "—but it's kinda hard to see you because, for some reason, you're kinda blurry."

"I can see you clearly enough though..." His low, monotone voice trailed off slowly as he rested his chin on a reclining fist. It was tinged with something like . . . confusion? Anger? Sadness?

No, it was disappointment. My gut told me as much, clenching slightly as he continued to watch me, deep in thought. But why? I didn't know him, didn't owe him anything.

So why did those relentless eyes made me feel like I've failed him somehow?

 _This is not a place in my head..._

Suddenly, he blinked and sat up, straightening his posture. Maybe he'd finally figured out something! With a determined look in his eyes, he confidently announced:

"Your soul knows me, but your mind does not."

. . . Nope, lost me again. "What the hell are you talking about?" It was my turn to stare him down, which was easy enough with him in his chair. "Do I know you?"

He sighed dryly at that. "I know you, but you don't know me. Oh, the irony."

That still told me nothing. He could tell, because then he sighed again, saying, "Do I have to tell you everything? I'm—"

I could kinda see his mouth forming the last few words, but I couldn't hear them. "Sorry, what did you say just now?"

He glared daggers at me. "I said, I'm..."

Again, I only heard the first part before his voice disappeared, his lips moving in silence. He watched me impassively, waiting for my reaction like he'd told me something really important. I looked back at him sideways. He wasn't messing around with me, was he?

"All I heard was 'I said, I'm...'"

"Are you kidding me?"

"Nope." I shrugged. I wasn't the best at lip-reading, and I wasn't gonna start trying now.

He looked less confident now. "Looks like there are barriers. I can't tell you anything that you're not aware of. Damn these rules!" He cursed suddenly. "What's the whole point of this if you can't even hear me?"

"Um, but I heard everything you said just now," I told him sheepishly.

Shooting me an unamused look, he continued, "Alright, let's test the limits." He began with his questions and I nodded or shook my head depending on when I stopped hearing his voice.

"My name is—no?

My sign is—no . . .

My number is . . . no wait, there's no need for me to share that," he muttered under his breath.

"What?"

"What?" he echoed half-mockingly, smoothly covering his slip-up. "Did you think that I was just a figment of your imagination?"

I wasn't about to admit it. After all, wasn't this all just a dream? It was getting so weird...

He took my silence as his answer. "Fortunately, or unfortunately for you, I'm very much real. I have a life in the real world, not just in this dream we're in."

"So what are you doing here?" I burst out in frustration. It didn't make any sense. "I don't get it, why are we standing here"—I waved at the space between us—"talking?"

"Well," he hesitated, choosing his words carefully, "The reason why I'm here is that we've met each other in the real world, creating a bond, or a connection if you will."

"Okay . . . ?" I nodded slowly, though everything was still confusing. Bonds? Connections? I've never heard anything about something like this before, the closest being what I knew about soulmates, which was admittedly limited, to begin with.

Still, I did know who my soulmate is.

 _I can see the doubt in your eyes_

 _You say there's no such thing as better things in life_

 _Well, I must confess this is all too new for me_

 _A whole new world, a whole new world to see..._

"But I've never met you in the real world. Or maybe we did since I did change schools, but I think that I'd remember a dude like you."

". . .What?" His eyes flickered to mine with obvious confusion.

On a closer look, even though I didn't _know_ him, I had to admit that his physical appearance was good-looking. Attractive even, in his own way of course. Besides his unusually dark eyes, which were probably his best feature, his light blond hair was swept across his face in longish bangs, giving him a mysterious sort of look.

We haven't stood head to head, but I was pretty sure that I was taller than him. Every inch of him screamed pretty boy, like those models in the magazines my mum reads. A true heartbreaker. He wasn't the type of person that I'd talk to easily unless I had someone like Berwald to back me up.

Still, there was just something about him that made me want to talk to him. It wasn't because we were the only people in this place, but I wasn't completely sure what it was. Maybe he was right and we did have some kind of connection . . . So I'll just wait and see how this goes for now.

Then I realized that I've just left him hanging, so the first thing on my mind popped out. "You know, with your looks you probably get all the girls."

Now he looked lost for words. Great. Don't tell he's one of those guys who either takes too much pride in or really oblivious to his appearance. I seriously doubt the latter because who doesn't care about how they look, but he was doing a damn good job of convincing me by acting like it.

"Um, sure," he eventually said, looking away into the distance. "Thanks, I guess..."

Welp, that wasn't awkward at all. Note to self: don't do that again. If I could remember that. So now that we had that out of the way, I should start asking him questions. "Anyways, if we're gonna meet up again, we should probably get to know each other."

"That's probably best idea you've ever come up with. But it looks like I can't tell you about my true self, so I'll need some sort of . . . nickname then," he grimaced, looking not too happy about his idea.

"Hmm." I stared at him, trying to find inspiring nickname material. What should I call this guy? He noticed and his scowl deepened. "And it looks like I can't trust you to pick one, so I'll decide."

I gasped in mock offense. "Hey! I know that I'm pretty good at coming up with nicknames."

"Oh, really?" Indigo eyes narrowed at me. "Who else names their dog, Lego?"

. . . Okay, so maybe that wasn't the best name I've come up with. I winced awkwardly. "It seemed like a good idea then..."

"If you say so." He shook his head, obviously not believing my words. I huffed and crossed my arms. What's his problem anyway? Lego is a great name, and I have no regrets at all—

But wait a second . . . "How did you know that?"

He smirked. "I've already told you. I. Know. You."

I turned away and started to pace a bit, determinedly not looking at him. He was really starting to creep me out. Besides my parents, Berwald, his father and Tina, there weren't that many people who know about my dog. "Alright. So what if you do? What does that make you, some kind of stalker?"

"Me, a stalker?" He snorted in disdain. "As if! The only reason why I'm stuck in here is because of you, our past, and the present situation. What's so good about you that I'd even think about this-ugh!" He winced, head dropping to his hands like he had a headache.

I took a step towards him, unsure what to do. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine!" A hand shot out suddenly, warning me from getting any closer. "I'm fine," he repeated more firmly, reassuring himself. Bringing his legs up, he rested his head on his knees and wrapped his arms around him. When he spoke again, his words were slightly muffled by his arms.

". . . But back then, you could say that we were . . . friends." He cleared his throat, slightly lifting his head. "Best friends, even."

"Oh, then–!"

"For now, just call me Lu—" He caught himself and shook his head, sighing in annoyance. "L. That's it."

"Great!" I grinned. I finally had a name to his face. It wasn't really a nickname, so I didn't see why he had a problem telling me it in the first place, but whatever. I was thinking about purple-blue eyes crybaby, or maybe Mr. Idon'tknowyourname, but that works too. "And you can call me–"

"I already know your name," he interrupted, "So I'll just call you Mat."

"'Kay." I shrugged, thinking he wasn't any better at nicknames than I was. I watched him, wondering what we were supposed to do now, when noticing the chair he was sitting here reminded me the question I was going to ask before.

"So, um, where'd you get the chair?"

"This?" He glanced down at his seat before meeting my eyes with a slight quirk to his mouth and answered, "Magic."

I took a step back. "Whaaat? Really?!"

"Well, something like that. More like the power of imagination." He lounged back, looking a lot like a lazy cat. "It's just a chair, but do you want to try?"

"Hell Yeah!" I bounced on my heels excitedly. This was exciting! I was gonna do some magic!

"Alright then, close your eyes first."

As I did so, he continued, "Now picture a chair in your mind. Think about the appearance, size, shape, texture. If it has wood, visualize the grains and lines. For metal, recall the cool, reflective material under your fingers. The comforting feelings and memories with certain fabrics. But it's easier to pick a chair that you're already familiar with."

"Now what?" I grinned as I thought about exactly what I felt like sitting on.

His monotonic voice wafted into my ears, slightly echoing through the empty room. "Keeping your eyes closed, assume that your chair is right in front of you. Now reach for it."

 _Reach out your hands_

 _Tell me just what you feel_

I did as he said, waving my arms in front of me and tried to find my seat. But there was nothing there. My eyes cracked open to see him watching me. He had a pretty good poker-face on, but I could tell by his glinting blue eyes that he thought this was funny.

Whatever. I turned away, shutting my eyelids and tried again. And again. And again. And again.

Each time, no matter what I did or how hard I tried, nothing happened. I don't know how long I kept at it, whether it was my pride or stubbornness that pushed me through, but I did. Failure after failure.

Sometimes L would offer me some random advice, things like 'focus' and 'make sure to keep the image in your mind' and, weirdly enough, 'relax'.

 _Keep an open mind,_

 _It brings open hearts and open eyes_

 _You walk around with your hands out_

 _And I've never seen anyone so blind..._

Eventually, I had enough. "That's it," I groaned, taking a seat on the ground. "I'm done."

"Really? I thought you almost had it this time." He noted. I leaned on my elbows to give him an 'are-you-kidding-me' look.

"Really?" I mimicked him.

"Really."

" _Really?_ "

"Really." There was only a hint of annoyance in his voice.

" _REALLY?_ "

" _Really_." His eyes confidently glared back, daring me to argue.

 _So just trust me, you'll be just fine_

 _I need your trust just for tonight..._

"Fine, but this is the last time I'm doing this," I grumbled, closing my eyes once more. This time, I hesitated for a second. Was this really supposed to be easy? Or was he just playing a trick on me so that I'd look stupid?

"What, don't you trust me?" It was almost like he could read my mind.

"I don't know," I said with my eyes still closed. I wanted to open them, to see if he was lying or not, but I couldn't. I wanted to know. I wanted to believe. I wanted something to sit on.

"Should I trust you?"

"I think you should." Was his immediate reply. "But it's all up to you to decide."

Surprisingly, there was no sarcasm this time. None. Either my hearing was really good or just seriously bad in this place, but he sounded pretty genuine to me, like he wanted what was best for me, whatever I was thinking.

Taking a deep breath, I envisioned once more, keeping the image firmly in my mind, reaching out blindly and expecting nothingness—when my hand touched something this time. My eyes flew open in surprise and there it was!

My beanbag!

It was just like the one I had in my room. Plopping down right away, I sighed contently. Now, this was better!

I braced myself for L's criticism, but there was nothing other than a small noise from the back of his throat. "What?" I looked up at him half-challengingly.

"Should've known that you'd pick something like that," he commented.

"Well, what can I say?" I stretched out comfortably, drifting off a bit from all those attempts. "I'm a beanbag sort of guy."

"Clearly." L replied, amused. "Clearly."

His low chuckles were the last thing I remembered before I opened my eyes, this time to the sunlight shining through my window. My alarm wasn't blaring loud music this time; instead, it was some kind of soft, haunting sort of tune. I was actually surprised that it managed to wake me up somehow.

 _" This is not a place in my head_

 _Reach out your hands and tell me just what you feel, oh_

 _This is not just all in your head_

 _Mind over matter makes these things feel so real, oh..._

I reached over to shut it off. Still needed to find some other station to get me up in the mornings.

Leaning back into my pillows, I took the time to consider the dream. So his name is L, huh. What a strange guy. One night he was crying his weird eyes out, the next he was an uptight know-it-all. Still, he didn't seem that bad.

Maybe I'll see him again.

 _Oh, this is not a place in my head_

 _Reach out your hands and tell me just what you feel_

 _This is not just all in your head_

 _Mind over matter makes these things feel so real_

 _So real, so real, woah..._

* * *

Thanks again for reading~! :3


	7. Remembering the Past

So, it's been another 4 months again, hasn't it? (0-0)  
Ooooooof, really, there must be something wrong with me. For some reason, nothing gets to me more than achieving yet another 4 months of hiatus (why is that so? Do I fear the number 4 or something? xD) so a heartfelt thank you to those who reviewed recently~! (also apologies to those who I've told that this was going to be out sooner but then I forgot... uwuwuwu). Also If You Could See Me has somehow surpassed this story in chapters, so there goes my shame flying out the window! TwT I blame my sources of inspiration: SFIE relies on my music playlists and imagination, while IYCSE was born from travel brochures, magazines, offices and a special ingredient. But you guys aren't here for my rambling, so here we go~!

* * *

Should've Been Us, Tori Kelly

 _Walking round with my head down,_  
 _But I can't hide with these high heels on_  
 _Downtown in a thick crowd_  
 _But it's just you that my mind is on..._

 **Matthias**

Since I was up already, I might as well start my day.

I stretched my arms and looked at the time again. It was only seven, so I could go back to sleep for a few more hours since it was Saturday, but that dream was . . . kinda . . . Yeah, it was better to stay awake.

The weather outside looked okay to me, so I decided to go out for a jog and check out the neighborhood. I looked in Berwald's room to see if he wanted come along with me, but he wasn't there. He already had plans but he didn't even bring me? Pfft, he was probably out in the backyard working on another project or something. I'll check on him later.

I stopped by the kitchen to pick up an apple before heading out. As soon as I opened the front door, a gust of air blew at my face. It was pretty cool outside, but it wasn't too bad. The weather was gonna heat up later anyways.

Starting off with a slow and easy pace, I looked around the street. All the houses around me had similar structures, but at each block they were styled differently with alternating one-to-two stories tall. The first street looked like a typical neighborhood, with open areas of lawns and driveways. The next area seemed pretty nice but shady, with trees planted along the sidewalk.

I decided to try the third option, with plenty of space and a few trees here and there. As I made my way down the sidewalk, some people were just leaving their homes and starting their cars off to work. At the end of the street, I could see the taller buildings of the shopping district, as well as a small cafe at the end of the corner. Maybe I'll go drop by there for breakfast.

Or maybe I should go and try looking for a job somewhere. Even though I didn't have a set schedule yet, with homework and soccer, I wasn't sure if I was gonna have any spare time, but it couldn't hurt to try. At least it'd be something to do for the weekends.

I waved at a pair of dog-walkers as I turned at the next corner. Lost in thought, I was starting to pick up my pace when something familiar caught my attention. I stopped and turned to take a better look. It was a garden full of different plants and flowers—one of them matching the exact color of L's eyes.

Well, that was weird. I didn't know what kind of flower it was, so I pulled out my phone to ask Google, when I heard someone clearing her throat. I looked up to see Luna, of all people, staring at me.

"What are you doing here?" she asked.

•~•

 _Dressed up, got my heart messed up_  
 _You got yours and I got mine..._  
 _It's unfair that I still care_  
 _And I wonder where you are tonight_

•~•

 **Luna**

The last thing I expected to find this morning was my soulmate standing in front of my house.

I was surprised beyond belief. Wasn't this coincidence a bit too soon? This went beyond my expectations. Considering what happened last night, I didn't think I'd see him again so soon. This defied all logic.

And yet, here he was, staring intensely at the very flowers that shared my eye-color.

Something inside me fluttered hopefully. Did he recognize the color? Sense a connection to it? Maybe even realized that I—

No, that can't be it! Inwardly, I smacked my sleep-deprived brain and squashed down those ridiculously expectant thoughts. He didn't even know what I looked like, let alone my eye-color! Thankfully, I had my sunglasses on already, or else I'd be exposed in front of him in this unexpected encounter.

Still, my heart thumped excitedly. There had to be a good reason why he was here, so I waited to see what he had to say for himself.

"Oh, um, morning Luna!" he exclaimed in surprise. "You live here? I was just out for a run when I saw your flowers and–" he glanced back at them, his brow furrowing, "–I wanted to get a better look. Can you tell me the name of it?"

My eyes scanned the lawn, over the rows of various blossoms and plants my dad had planted and cared for these past few months. It was probably too optimistic of me to automatically assume that he was referring to _those_ flowers. He could easily be talking about the roses or lillies.

"Which one?"

"The ones by your mailbox." He pointed them out. Oh. Turns out that it wasn't all in my head after all. Ignoring the erratic bumping of my heart, I managed to calmly answer, "Those are larkspurs."

"Larkspurs, huh." He stared absentmindedly at them. I thought that was the end of that, so I turned away to go when he suddenly asked, "What about those white tall flowers by the steps?"

"Calla lilies."

"Those huge flowers by the fence with weird curly stems?"

"Icelandic poppies."

"How about the ones next to the window?"

"Freesia."

"Wow, you know all the names of these plants?" He surveyed our surroundings in amazement before turning back to me."Did you plant them?"

"No, my dad did. I helped pick them out."

"Oh." Mathias looked away. This time I was sure we were done, but then, "Which one's your favorite?"

"My favorite?" I raised an eyebrow at that. What to choose? I could say that I liked violets as a reference to Hamlet, but I knew he wasn't detail-oriented like me. Or I could go with the larkspurs, to see his reaction to my hidden eye-color. Those orchids were blooming beautifully this morning...

But in the end I picked neither and answered honestly, "Heathers."

Before he could ask where they were at, I was in my car and driving away. I was already late enough to work as it is. Even if he is my soulmate, if he really wanted to know, he could figure it out by himself.

•~•

 _Thinking it could be different,_  
 _But maybe we missed it, yeah_  
 _Thinking it could be different,_  
 _It could, it could—_

•~•

"Ahahahahahahaha!"

Alice laughed so hard, she almost knocked over the stack of books that were waiting to be scanned. Her laughter echoed across the empty room, bouncing off the walls and bookshelves.

"Shhh!" I glared at her. "We're in a library!"

"Hah . . . ahahahahah!" She tried to stop, but she couldn't control herself and continued to snicker at my suffering. I rolled my eyes and kept an eye at the doorway. If she wanted to get in trouble, then fine by me. I, on the other hand, needed my paycheck for my next project.

"Oh . . . oh, Luna," Alice gasped, finally reaching the end of her breath. "How did you end up with someone like Matthias?"

"Why, _now_ you want to know?" I turned away and continued to sort through the books and loaded up the cart. She carried over the last batch and handed them over to me one by one. "How else am I supposed to help you if I don't know all the details?"

Now that all the books were scanned in system, it was time to head to the awaiting bookshelves for their precious children to return. I pushed the cart along the dimly lit hallway and said, "But you were there, so you should know what happened."

"You don't really expect me to remember everything, do you?" Alice rolled her eyes as she pulled out books to arrange by subject. We arrived at the children's section, so we dropped off the picture books and continued down to the young adult novels.

"Well," I closed my eyes and searched through my memories, going far back into the past. Back before I was born as Luna or any other of my identities. Way back before there were such things as soulmates.

•~•

 _It should've been us,_

 _Should've been a fire,_

 _Should've been the perfect storm..._

•~•

Long, long ago, I was once Frost, son of Helena, queen of the Winter Fae. She was better known throughout the land as Mother Hel. Everyone knew of her cold, her cruelty, and most especially of her hatred of the Summer Court.

My mother hated the rules of the Courts, of how she had to share the control over the seasons with the King of Summer. If she had her way, the land would stay forever lost in chills of Winter. The cold had no faults with Mother Hel; she was of it and thus controlled it. She had no need of warmth, she reveled in the frost, wearing it like a cloud of perfume; especially when it made others suffer.

Therefore, she was always searching for ways to extend the Winter seasons by dragging in the cold early in Autumn or stubbornly holding fort in the early days of Spring. However, rules were rules, and so there had to be a balance. The Summer King would often retaliate in kind, ushering in sunny skies in the arrival days of Spring or clinging onto the last days of warmth in Autumn.

It was an endless war between the two sides.

In spite of that, Mother Hel was a crafty soul. She tried to expand her power and gain advantages from creating alliances with others. There were the other two Courts of Spring and Autumn, but Spring was closely allied with Summer while Autumn was unreliable, a true fence-sitter and remained neutral between Summer and Winter.

One strategic maneuver Mother Hel often used was offering up her children's hands in marriage. She didn't care about us; we were only the result of her occasional affairs with those who happened to capture her desire. But they didn't last very long; most were put to death the next day.

She loved power above everything and refused any weaknesses.

My mother didn't share the throne with anyone, let alone entertain the thought of passing it off to another. Only a few lucky ones recieved the honor of becoming a statue in her frozen courtyard, my father being one of them. Sometimes I would go and visit him, wondering why she had even bothered to keep him, to keep us and everyone under her control.

But that didn't matter, because no one would ever question her actions.

I remember the times she brought me out along with my siblings to sign unions with other clans. We were forced to show off our talents, skills, beauty, anything to appeal to their desires of having one of us as their mates. I hated the whole process of it all, but I never refused to participate. I couldn't.

There was once a close call for me when I was matched up with one of the Mountain Fae. It was one of the most important partnerships for Mother Hel, for the Mountain clan had access to valuable resources, soldiers, land, etc. At the very last minute, the youngest child of the Mountain King took a fancy to one of my brothers.

It happened to be Emil, or Snjór as he was named back then. He was also the sibling that I was closest with, since we happened to share the same father. I was surprised and relieved for my own sake, and elated yet a bit worried for his sake. Snjór would live safe and secure from Mother Hel under the protection of the Mountain clan, but there was no guarantee that his new spouse would treat him well.

The switch mattered not to my mother as long as a marriage took place, so she made no fuss about it. During the ceremony of their unity, I watched on with a neutral expression as troubling thoughts continued to plague my mind.

If this was to be the fate of all my siblings, then who would I end up with?

I could form a bond with a water nymph or sprite, or perhaps one of the Forest Folk. However, the decision would never be mine to take; I was a special case. As one of Mother Hel's eldest children, I was most likely to be fated as a tempting offering to a powerful family.

Not to mention that out of all Mother Hel's children, I resembled her the most. I shared her magic, her calculating mindset, and a bit of her beauty as well. However, one thing separated me from her, preventing me from being her most favored and loyal child, one particularly cursed trait that I had inherited from my father.

I, unlike Mother Hel, held a secret longing for warmth.

There was something about it that seemed . . . enticing. I could only look at the sun during Winter, yet I enjoyed the sensations it had on my being. Although as Winter Fey it was the natural enemy of my existence, I couldn't help but crave it.

It was only to be expected after all, since my father was a water sprite who enjoyed all states of matter; the cold and heat were all welcomed. He only had the misfortune of meeting my mother, who kept him around long enough to conceive Snjór and I before discarding him off in the frozen state of matter.

Sometimes I would question him silently, if everything he had done for my mother was worth his untimely end. But who was I to investigate the actions of one in love? I had no interest in it, and it failed to hold any value in my mother's eyes, so I let things be.

However, I wouldn't dare to tell her of my forbidden secret. Mother Hel would sooner put my siblings and I to death than allow any of us to openly covet the sun. So I concealed this horrid weakness of mine, hiding my true nature behind a blank, frozen mask that she approved of.

A perfect, mindless puppet-soldier to follow her every order.

Therefore, as seasons shifted over and Mother Hel had her turn in power, I accompanied her. Not to support her ambition, but to savor the last of the sun's rays before the oncoming chill of Winter. Silently fuming that she prolonged the entrance of Spring, stoically cheering when Spring pulled in victorious.

It had been his first Spring as Summer King on the day I met him.

To celebrate the arrival of Spring, and their victory over the harsh Winter, the Spring and Summer Fey sang and danced, awakening the beasts of the land from their Winter slumber and encouraging the growth of newly-born greenery.

I stood by Alice's shadow, who had been a stuffy Oak tree sprite known as Arthur, and watched the festivities commence. Their customs and traditions starkly differed from those of the Winter Court where I had grown up within. We did not dance or sing; we usually tortured our prisoners of war and their voices would fill the air with screams and shrieks of horror.

Arthur noticed my interest and offered to bring me along to join in, but I refused. As one of the Forest Folk, Arthur had not pledged his loyalty to any court, so he was free to wander and mingle as he so chose to. I, on the other hand, had boundaries to respect.

To think that a child of Winter wished to partake in a Spring gathering? How absurd would that be. I knew they would never welcome the presence of Hel's kind. Revealing my desires so easily, I'd be nothing but a joke in their eyes. A disgrace in Mother Hel's eyes.

So, with an apologetic bow, he slipped off into the fray, only to be greeted immediately by one of the beaming blue-eyed Summer Fey. My sharp gaze did not miss that his peridot eyes lit up in delight before folding his face back into his usual scowl. He could deny his feelings all he wanted, but I knew better. Besides, anyone who could send that stubborn tree stump into a fluster was perfect for him in my view.

My eyes drifted off from them and landed upon the dancing Summer girls. They were twirling and whirling at impressive speeds amongst the blooming meadows, but I was sure that I was far more graceful than they on ice. I turned away and continued to observe their activities, staying out of sight and hiding within the safety of the forest shade.

I was idly watching a singing competition when something flashed suddenly at the corner of my eye. That was when I saw him.

He stood out so distinctively from the celebrating Fey, shining like a celestial light. He was the embodiment of Summer: hair that sparkled and flared like rays of sunlight, eyes that shone with the brilliance of the sky, and held himself up with a swagger that stated he knew exactly how attractive he was.

He moved as if he were in charge of everyone and everything, seemingly taller for it. But he wasn't really that tall, just a bit above average and only a half of a head taller than myself. Compared to most Summer Fey, he wasn't as dark as the rest of them, yet his lightly tanned skin glowed as if coals were burning inside of him.

Everyone called out greetings to him, which he returned with a smile and waved back. His teeth were a perfect, blinding white that wreaked havoc upon every susceptible heart. Everything about him screamed _Danger!_ And yet I longed for nothing more than to draw closer to the heat he radiated.

Then, he must have sensed my stare, for he abruptly turned and looked straight into my eyes.

I was ensnared instantly by his questioning gaze, as helpless as prey before the Great Hunt. His eyes didn't hold the disgust or contempt of typical Summer Fey that I was used to facing down, but curiosity and interest instead.

We stared at each other for a moment before he suddenly broke out into a wide smile and held his hand out to me, beckoning me over to his side. I blinked in surprise. Surely he didn't mean for _me_ to come out and join them, did he?

Yet his steadfast sky-blue eyes remained upon my motionless figure, patiently waiting with his hand still held out. All around him, the Summer Fey began to noticed his actions and looked around curiously, wondering what held his attention. I glanced over at his tempting hand.

I wanted to take his offer, but I could not. I couldn't risk revealing myself.

I held his hopeful eyes for a moment longer before finally shaking my head and turning away to flee, stumbling in my haste to get away. _Come_. I called upon my second-in-command, who was hiding among the treetops, and channeled my power for a quick portal. _Let us return_.

I should've known better than to stay and watch.

•~•

 _Back and forth like a tug of war,_

 _What's it all for, do I want it back?_

 _I still got a little flame for ya_

 _Even though you drove me mad..._

•~•

Days later, he found me again by the mountainside. I had been enjoying my last day of freedom before retreating back into the ground for my Spring Slumber, observing the newly blooming flowers, envying them for their adoration of the sun. No one would ever blame them for that.

I plucked a few out of spite, but after flash-freezing and crushing them into bits, I grew interested in trying to hold one as normally as the Spring Fey did. It was no easy task. I had to put much concentration into my control over the cold inside me so that it would not spread to the blossom.

After a few hours of trials and failures, it was nearly the end of the day by the time I successfully held one in my hands. I brought it to my nose in curiosity. It smelt so wondrously sweet...

"That's a lovely violet you have there."

That unfamiliar voice ruined my concentration. I lost control and the cold took over once more, ending up with a frozen floret. Softly cursing under my breath, I looked up to face the intruder of my peace—and froze in place.

What was he doing here?

My eyes widened briefly before I regained control once more and went back into my usual blank mask. "What are you doing here?" I asked, sounding more calm than I felt.

To my surprise, he laughed and walked over to me, stopping just a few feet away. "That's what I should be asking you," he grinned. "I didn't think that we'd have the luck to meet again so soon. Tell me, why are you, Fey of the Winter Court, out here in the Spring?"

My head spun from the amount of heat he emitted, so much more intense than the sunlight I was used to, but I managed to reply curtly, "I asked you first."

He stared at me for another moment before throwing his head back for another laugh. "That's true," he chortled. "However, you were the one to reject my invitation..." he trailed off meaningfully.

"I owe you nothing," I said, amused that he would try to use that as a justified reason.

"Alright then," he gave in goodnaturedly, "I'll tell you."

He stepped closer to me, about a foot away, as if he were trying to pressure me into taking another step back by asserting some sort of male dominance. Instead, the action itself made me want to laugh. Who did he think he was?

Didn't he know who I was?

But, his next words left me in a turmoil of emotions.

"As Summer King, I have the right to be outside . . . don't you think?"

Sunlight flared from his skin, glorious and brilliant. My breath caught in my throat, and I stumbled back from the sudden blinding light. This was the Summer King?

The very one Mother Hel had fought against for centuries?

It couldn't be—he was far too young, possibly only a few seasons older than myself. Yet, he wasn't lying. Every word he had said rang true.

He smiled smugly at me, inviting and dangerous, as he stepped even closer until we were directly facing each other. Warmth rained over us, sunbeams falling like golden honey pouring over me. "Now, it's your turn."

I closed my eyes, basking in the warmth. This was the first time that I had ever felt the true power of the sun. Somewhere in my mind I knew I had to step away from him, but I didn't, couldn't. It was that same feeling again when I first saw him, like a mindless moth to flame. It wasn't a feeling that I liked.

Even though I was at a loss for words, I couldn't allow him to get the best of me!

"I was only enjoying my last breath of fresh air before I return to my rest," I stated simply, backing up slowly. If Mother Hel found out that I was speaking with the current Summer King, there's no telling what she'd might do—

 _Frost?_ Her sharp voice sliced through my train of thought. _Where are you?_

 _On my way, Mother Hel!_ I quickly responded, finally opening my eyes to see his face far too close to mine. I immediately leaped back, widening the distance between us and noticed how dark the sky had gotten. No wonder she was calling me back. "However, as much as I would love to stay and speak a while longer, I really must leave."

"Oh, really?" He took another step closer, undaunted by my retreat.

"Yes." I trudged further back, back into the safety of the trees. Almost there to the portal I had at ready to take me back. I had never felt so afraid before. I was used to the Summer Fey as weaklings who were dependant on the sun to win their battles against us in the Spring, and the reason for their fall in Autumn.

It was just my luck to encounter the Summer King of them all. Mother Hel's abhorred enemy. I couldn't get involved with him. He'd only bring misfortune to myself.

I turned away without a word and dove into my awaiting portal. As I hurriedly chanted the words to teleport myself back, I could hear his laughter howling at my speedy exit, and parting words that were so faint,

" _Dream of me."_

But I must have been muddled in my thoughts, because that couldn't have been what he had said. As if I would listen to a request as ridiculous as that. Dream of him? No, thank you.

•~•

 _Now and then, I pretend_  
 _That it's you when I close my eyes..._  
 _You got yours, I got mine,_  
 _But I wonder where you are tonight..._

•~•

My portal brought myself straight to the throne room, where Mother Hel awaited. After a herald announced my presence, I dropped into a bow and asked, "You wished to see me?"

"Where have you been all this time, Frost?" she demanded, seemingly passive, with a slight undercurrent of annoyance. Her voice was low, but chilling as it transversed through my ears. I stood up straight and answered, "I was only settling a small matter with another one of those pesky Summer Fey, who dared to think that they have the upper hand for now."

I wasn't willing to tell her the whole truth, since she would erupt into freezing disorder if she knew what had occurred earlier. Thankfully, my words alone appeared that I had dealt with them accordingly. As I expected, she hummed in approval.

"Wonderful. After all, we should never let them forget who truly rules the land!" She chuckled gleefully for a moment longer before returning back to all seriousness. "However, Frost, there's no need for you to be using your abilities against trash like them. There will be plenty of opportunities for you next Winter. You should be readying yourself for your slumber. Off you go."

"Yes, Mother Hel." I bowed deeply before exiting and rushed off to my chambers where Snjór was waiting for me.

"What took you so long?" he whined as soon as I shut the door behind myself. I shrugged in response, pulling off my protective outerwear. It usually protected myself from the harsh light of the sun, but I had no need of it here. "Mother Hel wished to see me first."

This was our last Spring Slumber together. My brother wasn't off to be married until the next Winter. I was grateful that the Mountain clan was willing to wait for him. We wouldn't have many chances to see each other in the future.

He let out a short, amused laugh. "Brother, you know that you can't hide things from me. I know that you went out recklessly to visit the sun one last time before our rest, didn't you?"

"Yes," I relented unashamedly as I lay down beside him. He knew me all too well.

"Oh, Frost," he sighed, somewhat helplessly, "What will happen to you once I'm gone?"

"Well," I chuckled reassuringly at him, pulling him in closer, "I will miss you, little one."

Snjór snorted. "No, I meant beyond _that_. Will you be able to control your traitorous desire for the sun?"

"I . . . I . . ." I fumbled with my words, struck dumb by his conflicted eyes. I couldn't give him a definitive response, yet I did not wish to disappoint him either. "I don't know."

He sighed again at my hesitant reply. We lay in silence for moment as he tried to gather his thoughts, I was just about to drift off to sleep when Snjór spoke again. "Then, can you promise to be more careful?"

My eyes flickered open in shock at his plea. "I just don't want Mother Hel to—" He broke off his thought with a shudder, remembering all the horrid things our mother was capable of. I smiled consolingly at him, reaching over to fiddle with his soft, silvery strands of hair.

"No need to fret," I stated solemnly, "I swear to you my oath that I will do my utmost best to practice caution and to avoid any sort of danger."

"Good." He yawned, rubbing at his tired eyes. I could feel my face numbing to fall asleep, but there was one last thing I needed to know.

"I just happened to remember something," I spoke up casually, "How are the preparations planned for your future arrangement?"

"Oh, Brother," he groaned quietly, but I could hear the gaiety in his voice, "Must I tell you everything about him?"

"But of course!" I persisted, finally closing my eyes with a satisfied smile, "After all, it is my duty as your elder brother to determine whether or not if he is deserving of you."

"Well, he follows different customs and traditions that we don't have here. For instance, he—"

As we talked, I eventually drifted off to sleep, dreaming not of my brother's future, but of bright blue skies and warm sunlight.

•~•

 _Oh oh, oh oh,_

 _It should've been us._

 _It, it, it should've been us..._

•~•

"And that's how you fell in love with him?" Alice asked sceptically.

"No, of course not," I told her disdainfully, shaking my head off of the memories I had pulled out of the recesses of my mind. "I wasn't that easy. We had to go through many difficulties before that happened. But yes, I loved him. I said yes when he asked me to stay with him. He offered me love, forever, midnight dances—"

I stopped, unwilling to to bring up the past experiences I had with him. "And look where it got me this time," I laughed dryly. "I thought he was worth the risk. Worth the pain I'm suffering from."

"Luna . . ." Alice reached out her arms to me for a hug, her peridot eyes sympathetic.

"No, I'm fine." I avoided her hands. I didn't want her pity, pity from someone who had already found her other half to a happy ending. Shoving another book into the slim crevice, I continued, "Anyways, I wouldn't even be going through all this if only I hadn't agreed to bond my soul to his. I've been scammed in this lifetime..."

"Then who's more stupid: the idiot, or the one who falls for him?"

"Both, always both," I sighed. "After all, love makes us all fools in the end."

"Right." We finished shelving all the books and took turns pushing the cart back, where other books yearned for us to return them. As we loaded up the cart again, Alice thought out-loud, "How did we bond our souls again?"

"Don't tell me you forgot that too!" I rolled my eyes again. "It was some sort of trend back then, to prove that 'love will last forever!' gesture. I forgot who started it, but everyone was jumping on it, and going off to visit the Soul Mother—"I stopped, an idea forming in my head.

But of course, the Soul Mother! Why hadn't I remembered her sooner?

"And?" Alice raised an eyebrow at my silence.

I turned back to her with a grin. "How you feel about summoning someone tomorrow?"

•~•

 _What if we ruin it all,_

 _And we love like fools?_

 _And all we have,_

 _We lose?_

•~•

* * *

A/N: Ahahahahahahahaha! We finally have the first past life~! Whew... \\(nwn)/  
Doesn't this feel like a whole 'nother story? xDDDD Welp, hopefully I won't take too long with the next chapter, becuz then yall are gonna have to wait until next year... but no worries! I'll definitely have it posted before then! heheheh... *sweats nervously*

It's just that I've gotten a lot more busier than I thought, plus procrastination, plus tempting, shiny new bubbles of inspiration for other stories~ (butIdon'twannastartmoarstoriesthanIcanhandle... ;w;) And I've got another story that's kinda sorta Halloweenish which will be coming out soon, so if you're interested, keep an eye out for it!


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